In his first public appearance as the highest-paid professional athlete in sports history, Juan Soto appeared upbeat about the next phase of his Major League Baseball career with the New York Mets. And why wouldn’t he be? The Mets will pay him at least $765 million over the next 15 years, taking Soto through his age 41 season — in all probability the remainder of his time in baseball.
“The Mets are a great organization, and what they have done in the past couple of years – showing all the ability to keep winning, to keep growing a team, to try to grow a dynasty – is one of the most important things,” the 26-year-old slugger said Thursday, during his first press conference as a Met at Citi Field in Queens. “What you were seeing from the other side was unbelievable. The future that this time has, it had a lot to do with my decision.”
The monetary value of Soto’s contract offer from the Mets was reportedly only $5 million more than what the Yankees, the team Soto played for and helped take to the World Series in 2024, offered him. Soto said that his decision to spurn his 2024 club and move from the Bronx to Queens was not solely based on money.
Soto Completely Unsentimental About Time With Yankees
But Soto did not get through the press conference without delivering a rather harsh message to his ex-teammates. His message made clear that though he is only six weeks removed from the end of the World Series, when the Yankees fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games, he has no sentimental feelings about his year with the storied Bronx franchise.
In fact, it appears he moved on as as soon as the last out of the World Series was made, with Dodger pitcher Walker Buehler striking out Yankee outfielder Alex Verdugo.
“I haven’t talked to any of those guys,” Soto told the assembled press corps at Citi Field.
Soto then added that he “talked to them through the playoffs, the end of the playoffs.” Which only makes sense, because during the playoffs he was an active member of the Yankees and, together with his teammates, was competing through three rounds of postseason play to win a championship.
Aaron Judge Did Not Reach Out to Soto, Either
But Soto added that since the postseason ended and during the entire process of his free agency that resulted in his record-setting Mets contract, he had not spoken to any of his former teammates on the Yankees.
It also appears that none of the Yankees players reached out to Soto as he was weighing his decision whether to return to the iconic franchise, or move across town — or perhaps somewhere else altogether. Most notably, six-time All Star and two-time American League MVP Aaron Judge did not attempt to contact Soto to persuade him to stay with the Yankees — an omission that former Mets pitcher Trevor May, speaking on the Foul Territory podcast, found puzzling.
“You are the LeBron James of the game right now, so just be him,” May said of Judge. “It is interesting and kind of of odd that he was very adamant about his not talking to him, which seemed a little out of place with the situation.”
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Juan Soto Delivers Harsh, 8-Word Message to Former Yankees Teammates