Juan Soto is packing his bags and jumping across the Big Apple from the Bronx to Queens, where an awful lot of luggage will be needed if he has to haul the money from his new contract, too.
The 26-year-old superstar right fielder is headed to the New York Mets on a 15-year, $765 million deal, which will pay him an average of $51 million annually, per multiple reports Sunday night.
It is the richest contract ever doled out in Major League Baseball history, breaking the record previously set last year when the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Shohei Ohtani to a heavily deferred 10-year, $700 million deal.
Mets owner Steve Cohen lived up to expectations placed upon him when the Soto sweepstakes initially began. The man worth $16 billion was expected to outbid any team that threw its hat into the ring for the crown jewel of MLB’s offseason.
With it, he strengthens the Mets’ World Series aspirations, which are as high as they have been since 1986. New York made the NLCS less than two months ago in what was David Stearns’ first year as president of baseball operations — an accomplishment that indicated the organization was ahead of schedule considering 2024 was billed as a transitional year.
Soto now creates as dynamic a 1-2 punch in all of baseball as he will likely slot in the Mets’ lineup behind NL MVP runner-up Francisco Lindor.
Soto hit 41 home runs last season with the Yankees — his first season with the club after being acquired from the San Diego Padres last winter.
Creating a two-headed monster with Aaron Judge, Soto was a key member of the Yankees’ American League pennant-winning team, which lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games at the World Series.
Soto made it clear that he was not going to remain loyal to the Yankees or give them a hometown discount just moments after their season ended following Game 5. He said that he would be open to any team that made an offer in free agency.
Roughly one month following the completion of the World Series, the field of major players for Soto was set with both New York teams leading the pack along with the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, and Dodgers.
Each of the finalists’ offers was believed to come in near or over the $700 million mark, all but confirming that the Soto would receive one of the most lucrative contracts in MLB history.
