Source: Superstar Juan Soto nearing decision on free agency

LOS ANGELES -- Juan Soto's much-hyped free agency is nearing its final stages, with a source familiar with the process opening the possibility that the star outfielder could pick his destination by the end of this week -- before the start of the annual winter meetings.

The industry's agents and executives will descend upon Dallas this Sunday. Soto is widely expected to sign a record-breaking contract before they depart the following Thursday and could do so before they even arrive, an industry source told ESPN on Tuesday.

Soto's agent, Scott Boras, declined to offer a definitive timetable.

"When you go through these things, you just have a lot of information to meld through," Boras said of Soto while attendingBlake Snell's introductory news conference at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday. "We've had meetings with a number of franchises. He's begun the process of eliminating teams and doing things. Juan is a very methodical thinker, so we'll see. I don't think anything is imminent in the near future."

The New York Yankees, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers are the five known candidates for Soto, whose deal is expected to exceed $600 million and could span 15 years to push the value to unprecedented levels. Shohei Ohtani secured the largest guarantee in baseball history with the 10-year, $700 million deal he signed with the Dodgers last offseason. But more than 95% of Ohtani's contract is deferred, bringing the present-day value down to $460 million for luxury tax purposes.

Soto's deal could exceed that -- and will serve as the latest example that the free agent market is moving a lot more swiftly this winter. Last offseason, four of Boras' highest-profile clients -- Snell, Matt Chapman, Jordan Montgomery and Cody Bellinger -- remained unsigned into spring training. Before this year's winter meetings, Boras already has locked in deals for Snell and fellow starting pitchersYusei Kikuchi, Frankie Montas and Matthew Boyd.

Soto, who at 26 is already one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, could follow shortly.

Asked why teams seem to be more willing to spend money this offseason, Boras said: "I wish I can answer those questions. I do. I think a lot of it has to do with media certainty, platforms working the way they should, and the streaming thing that they have going on is very viable, very profitable. I don't think they like to say that, but obviously the markets indicate that there is a different attitude about what it is.

"And also, who's in the market has a lot to do with things too. You have major-market franchises, you have generational talent, which really illustrates the needs."br/]