Juan Soto welcomed to New York Mets, talks building a dynasty, family and whether he’s spoken to ex-teammates

Juan Soto, freshly minted member of the New York Mets and new owner of the largest contract in Major League Baseball history, was formally introduced on Thursday by the club he hopes to ferry to World Series glory in the coming years. Present at the dais for the Citi Field introduction were Soto, his agent Scott Boras, Mets owner Steve Cohen, and Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns.

Soto comes to Mets and Cohen on a 15-year, $765 million that includes no deferred money. As well, Soto has an opt-out after the fifth year, 2029, that the Mets can wipe out only if they push the total value of the deal past $800 million. The slugger landed in Queens after spending his walk year of 2024 with the crosstown New York Yankees, and his where-eagles-dare levels of production that helped the Yankees to their first pennant in 15 years. Those same Yankeees vigorously worked to bring Soto back to the Bronx, but in the end Cohen’s riches and willingness to use them were too much. As for his former Yankee teammates, Soto on Thursday said he hasn’t spoken to any of them since making his decision. 

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And here’s No. 22 brandishing the orange and blue for the first time: 

“It’s obviously a huge move,” Cohen said on Thursday. “It puts an accent on what we’re trying to do. It accelerates our goal of winning championships. But more importantly, I think, my goal was to change how the Mets were viewed, and I think we’re really on the path of changing that. We’re never going to stop. We’re always in a constant state of improvement.”

As far how they got here, the billionaire owner joked that it wasn’t easy.

“This was a competitive process,” Cohen said. “There were many teams involved and it was hard to know where you stood. It was a moving target. It was changing by the day. There are moments where you question if you’re going to get what you really want. I got the call at the end.”

Cohen also said he wanted “to thank Juan and Scott for believing in what we’re building here.”

That was no doubt a key for Soto, who pressed other serious bidders on their plans for the future and how well positioned they were in terms of talent to contend for years to come. “The Mets are a great organization,” Soto said, “and what they have done in the last couple years, showing the ability to keep winning, to keep growing, to try to grow a dynasty is one of the most important things to me.”

Or, more succinctly, Soto also said, “The future this team has had a lot to do with my decision.”

The superstar also stressed the important of family, both in the new one he’s joining in Queens and his own, who he said were made to feel welcome and supported by the Mets during the process.

As you would suspect given the dimensions of his contract, much is expected of Soto. He has the skills and track record to meet those expectations. Last season for the Yankees, he slashed .288/.419/.569 with 41 home runs and more walks than strikeouts. For his career, he owns an OPS+ of 160 and a WAR of 36.4. To boot, he’s exceedingly durable and still just 26 years of age. When you put him in the company of what other greats have done through age 25, he’s simply one of the best ever. This course isn’t lost on Stearns, who at the presser said, “Juan’s performance on the field, his accolades, his talent speak for themselves. His consistency at such a young age is nearly unprecedented in the history of baseball.”

After the press conference ended, Stearns told a smaller group of reporters that early in the process of interviewing for his job atop baseball operations, he and Cohen discussed what in 2023 was Soto’s far-off free agency. He and Cohen shared a desire to make a dogged pursuit of Soto when the time came, which of course is what they did. On Thursday at Citi Field, the success of those efforts was made official.