It has been a bit of a roller-coaster season for the New York Yankees. After a respectable but not world-beating 19-12 record through April, the team went on a tear in May, finishing the month 21-7. Since then, however, the Yankees have been pretty much a .500 team. But, thanks in part to their early run, they are now vying for the top record in baseball.

While Aaron Judge is having yet another fantastic (and historic) season, the Yankees owe much of their success to Juan Soto, who they traded for in the offseason. Soto is having his best season in years. Through 118 games, he’s batting .307 with an on-base percentage of .438, both well over his career averages. He also has 34 home runs and 103 runs scored. For context, Soto played all 162 games for the San Diego Padres last season and amassed a total of 35 home runs and 97 runs scored.

After a recent three-homer game, Judge — who is no slouch himself — called Soto the greatest hitter in the game. (Soto, in turn, called Judge the “greatest hitter in the world.”)

Perhaps it’s not surprising that Soto’s resurgence is taking place in the final year of his contract. A new deal, or lack thereof, has been an issue hovering over the Yankees all season. While the team certainly wants him back, whether or not he returns will come down to what it always does: money.

Recently, ESPN polled 28 MLB executives for their take on how much Soto could garner in a new contract. The general consensus is that he would get somewhere in the neighborhood of $500 million for 10 years. It should be noted that this survey took place in June so those numbers may already be dated.

For every multi-homer game he has or incredible outfield assist he makes, Soto’s price tag may just keep going up. And if he has an outstanding postseason, his contract could approach, if not surpass, the massive deal that Shohei Ohtani received last year.

With numerous big contracts on the roster, can the Yankees afford to keep Soto? Perhaps the more important question, however, is can they afford to lose him? The team is riding its best and most consistent offense in some time, and taking him out of the lineup would dramatically alter its chance of being a World Series contender for the next several years.

Even worse than losing Soto would be if he left the Bronx for Queens and started playing for the New York Mets. The Yankees were embarrassed by getting swept by the Mets in this year’s Subway Series, and seeing Soto in blue and orange would only add insult to injury.

While it looks as though any contract negotiations won’t take place until the season is over, the Yankees would be wise to get Soto locked up before all of those other bidders come calling.