Fresh off a World Series run with the New York Yankees, star outfielder Juan Soto and cross-town rival New York Mets have agreed to a monumental 15-year, $765 million contract. Upon completion, Soto will have the largest contract in professional sports in terms of average annual value and total contract valuation.
Diving into the minutiae of the record-breaking deal, Soto and the Mets will both have an opt-out after 5 years which the Mets can void if Soto chooses to opt-out by increasing his yearly salary by $4 million a year, taking the contracts total value to $805 million in that instance.
Also included is a $75 million signing bonus believed to be one of the highest in all of professional sports.
The 26-year-old Soto has batted .285/.421/.532 with 201 home runs and 592 RBIs across his seven-year major league career. Soto is also a four-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, batting champion, and World Series champion with the Nationals in 2019. He has also accumulated 36 wins above replacement, a key statistic in modern major league baseball.
His former team, the Yankees, came a close second for Soto’s services with a reported bid of 16 years, $760 million, slightly below the Mets offer in terms of annual average value.
Throughout the free agency process, many insiders reported that Mets owner Steve Cohen would not be outbid in his quest to lure the slugger away from the Bronx. Cohen is the wealthiest owner in MLB by a long shot, making the Mets the odds-on favorite for Soto from the start.
The contract is staggering in comparison to other professional sports where athletes like Lebron James and Tom Brady’s total career earnings don’t even come close to what Soto stands to make from this contract alone.
The Mets and Cohen have clearly pushed their chips to the middle of the table and gone all in on winning now led by Soto. Since Cohen bought the Mets in 2020 from the Wilpon family, he has made significant investments into improving the Mets' on-field talent, signing noted stars Fransisco Lindor, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and now Juan Soto.
Many baseball reporters now expect the Mets to contend next year with the reigning World Series champs, the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have spent significant capital as well to resign and bring in more talent to an already star-studded team.
After spurning the Yankees for the rival, next year’s Subway Series between the Mets and Yankees is sure to produce drama. As baseball fans rejoice over the signing of Soto to the Mets, it’s time to look forward to next year and dream about the dynasties being created on both the East Coast and West Coast.
Let’s play ball!
