Rafael Soriano is a top free agent with no team that is going hard after him. The best relief pitcher left on the market, Soriano's agent, Scott Boras, has said that Soriano will only accept a closing job, except for the Yankees. Boras, the best agent in the game, gets his player the money they want for the amount of years they want about 95% of the time. Will Soriano be in the 5%?
There aren't many teams with a lot of money left to spend this offseason, as the White Sox spent on Adam Dunn, Jesse Crain, and company, while the Red Sox spent on Carl Crawford, Bobby Jenks, and company. The Rangers spent on Adrian Beltre, and the Nationals spent on Jayson Werth.
Both the Yankees and Angels have had relatively quiet offseasons, as the Angels have only signed Hisanori Takahashi and Scott Downs, with the Yankees signing Russell Martin and Pedro Feliciano.
Where will Soriano sign?
Teams in need of a closer:
Rays: Soriano's 2010 team could try to re-sign him, but they never have a lot of money.
Braves: Soriano's 2009 team could try and get him, rather than using the youngsters.
Pirates: You never know.
Angels: Unless the Angels think Fernando Rodney is a closer, they could be the favorite to sign Soriano.
Nationals: Added them in, if Storen isn't guaranteed the job, he could be a possibility for the Nationals, as they have been spending this offseason.
The Yankees are another team that could sign Soriano, as mentioned before. Soriano would set-up for the Yankees, if they are interested. As of now there are many conflicting reports on the Yankees interest.
Also included in the poll are the White Sox, who have an opening if they don't think Jesse Crain or Matt Thornton can close. They spent a ton of money this offseason, but you never know.