For Juan Soto, there was never ever a result for the 2024-25 offseason that didn't include getting showered in a historical quantity of money.
Well, the outcome of Soto's totally free company is now there to be glared at: The New York Mets for 15 years and $765 million dollars, as initially reported by Jon Heyman of the New York City Post
Jon Heyman @JonHeyman
Breaking: Juan Soto to the Mets. $765M. 15 years.
This is it, folks. The Big One. Soto's offer is both the longest and the most costly agreement in MLB history.
Before the Mets and owner Steve Cohen struck a handle Soto and representative Scott Boras, the longest agreement ever handed to a big league gamer was the 14-year extension that the San Diego Padres made with Fernando Tatis Jr. in 2021.
Regarding overall dollars, Soto's offer tops Shohei Ohtani's $700 million pact with the Los Angeles Dodgers from last winter season. And while that agreement is technically for 10 years, it is truly a 20-year handle $680 million in deferments waiting for collection in between 2034 and 2043.
The contemporary worth of Ohtani's agreement is more like $460 million. That is hardly greater than the $447.5 million that Alex Rodriguez's 10-year, $252 million agreement from 2001 would deserve in 2024 dollars.
Neither dollar figure compares what the 26-year-old Soto is now worth. It is unquestionably a lot for him to measure up to, yet it's tough to even feign suspicion that he will.
It's easy to understand if finalizings this huge trigger a worried impulse. Scanning the list of the highest-paid gamers in MLB history is a great method to practice your day-to-day wincing.
Let's narrow the focus to where it belongs: on long-lasting offers for complimentary representatives who were A) just in their mid-20s and B) in the thick of superstardom.
It was a list even before Soto's name was included, consisting just of Rodriguez and Bryce Harper and Manny Machado, who signed for 13 years, $330 million and 10 years, $300 million, respectively, in 2019.
It bodes well for Soto that not one of those offers looks like an error. Think about those 3 guys' WAR-based worth (by means of FanGraphs) in relation to their incomes (by means of Spotrac):
- Alex Rodriguez, 2001-2010: $314.4 M in worth, $240.3 M in incomes
- Bryce Harper, 2019-2024: $190.6 M in worth, $144.4 M in profits
- Manny Machado, 2019-2024: $189.8 M in worth, $137.1 M in revenues
There's clearly a lot more to state about all 3 offers, however the message of a more verbose spiel would be the exact same: If the Mets have their method, Soto will make it 4-for-4 in offers of this sort yielding enormous wins.
Soto's Quality As a Hitter Can't Be Overstated
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