Rafael Soriano Rumors: Ranking Suitors' Chances of Landing the Star Reliever

With Mariano Rivera lost early in the season, the New York Yankees had a big hole to fill as they looked to piece together the back end of their bullpen.

Rafael Soriano stepped up in a big way in 2012, posting a 2.26 ERA in 69 appearances while saving 42 games—three short of his career high.

None of that has proven to be enough to garner much in the way of interest for Soriano, who declined the Yankees' qualifying offer for 2013 just over a month ago.

Soriano will certainly pitch somewhere next season, and as teams weigh the pros and cons of handing out a big contract and giving up a draft pick, here are some organizations that could prove to be the most likely landing spots.

5. Philadelphia Phillies

Despite handing out a massive contract to Jonathan Papelbon last offseason the Philadelphia Phillies still saw subpar performances from their bullpen as they struggled in the NL East.

With Papelbon, the team clearly has its closer locked in, but if the market for Soriano continues to be soft they could lowball an offer that could put him back in the role of an elite setup man.

It's hard to envision the Phillies being eager to give up a draft pick should they sign Soriano, but they are one of the few teams that has the payroll flexibility to get a deal done.

4. San Francisco Giants

As the San Francisco Giants passively scoured the market for late inning options this winter, they had a discussion with high-profile agent Scott Boras, who represents Rafael Soriano and Jose Valverde.

With Brian Wilson out of the picture for the Giants right now it wouldn't be entirely surprising to see them go after one of the options out there.

At the same time, Sergio Romo's performances in 2012 could very well be enough to convince the Giants to stand pat.

3. Los Angeles Dodgers

We've seen the Los Angeles Dodgers make move after move over the past six months in an effort to give themselves one of the most dynamic rosters in all of baseball.

Just a week ago, Jim Bowden of ESPNxm tweeted that the Dodgers may still be adding players, noting Joel Hanrahan as a late inning option while downplaying the possibility of adding Soriano.

Hanrahan has since gone to the Boston Red Sox, and while that isn't an indication that Soriano is suddenly atop their list, he could still be an option even though the team already signed Brandon League this offseason.

2. Detroit Tigers

There isn't a team that's been linked to Rafael Soriano nearly as much as the Detroit Tigers, who could be looking for late inning help with Jose Valverde testing the waters in free agency.

As Danny Knobler of CBSsports.com pointed out, the Tigers likely won't be swayed into springing for a deal to sign Soriano, which is not entirely surprising with the unappealing draft pick compensation he'd cost.

They could, however, just be waiting the market out, as Valverde will certainly pitch somewhere in 2013 and if the interest continues to be relatively nonexistent then his price will continue to drop.

1. New York Yankees

After filling in admirably for Mariano Rivera during the 2012 season, Rafael Soriano made a risky move in declining a lucrative qualifying offer for 2013, instead deciding to turn to free agency.

That decision has not gone well for Soriano, who has struggled to garner much in serious interest, partly due to the draft pick compensation that signing the star reliever would cost.

The Yankees don't immediately appear to be a fit for Soriano as he doesn't want to hold down the setup role, but if interest in the reliever continues to be low they could be the best match, especially since they're the only team in the league that wouldn't need to surrender a draft pick to get a deal done.