The second the final out of the 2024 World Series settled into Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith’s glove, the race to sign New York Yankees right fielder Juan Soto was on.

Soto is entering free agency at the age of 26 with a resume to his name most players don’t accumulate in a career. He owns four All-Star appearances, four top-10 MVP finishes, four Silver Sluggers, and a gaudy .285/.421/.532 career slashline.

He is expected to receive one of the most lucrative contracts in the history of North American sports, though which team will sign him to that contract remains a mystery. Yankees fans, however, could not have liked what they heard from general manager Brian Cashman Tuesday afternoon.

“I had a conversation with (agent) Scott Boras yesterday,” Cashman said. “We certainly have an interest in retaining him and we’ll put our best foot forward there. But at the same time, that’ll either lead to us retaining him and signing him back or we’ll be forced to go in a different direction if we can’t.”

The slight note of defeatism Cashman struck clashes with the success Soto found this season—his first with New York. He hit .288 with 41 home runs and 109 RBIs, and his go-ahead 10th-inning home run in Game 5 of the ALCS against the Cleveland Guardians all but wrapped up the pennant for the Yankees.

“If we can’t (re-sign) Soto, there’s a lot of different players in this marketplace that can positively impact this roster in different ways,” Cashman said.