The New York Mets introduced Juan Soto on Thursday at a press conference at his new base in Queens, not far from the Bronx where he starred for the New York Yankees last season. The four-time All-Star has officially joined the Mets after signing a record-setting 15-year contract worth $765 million.
The richest contract in the history of professional sports, which was finalized on Wednesday, turned heads. It surpassed the contract value of two-time Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, just one year after the Japanese phenom signed a 10-year contract worth $700 million.
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However, Ohtani’s historic contract included $680 million in deferred money (a full 97% of his salary), which will be paid from 2034 through 2043. That payment structure was not taken into account in negotiations with the Mets, according to baseball mega- Officer Scott Boras.
“That was never a trail we followed,” Boras said in an interview after Soto’s performance in Queens. “Teams proposed, but we made a deal that had current value.”
Soto’s contract, which has a potential total value of $805 million under an option, has no deferred money and included a $75 million signing bonus.
Boras, who has negotiated billions for his clients since he started representing baseball players in 1980, said he is not opposed to contracts that include deferred compensation, pointing to the five-year, $182 million deal he negotiated for Ohtani’s new teammate , Blake Snell. . The two-time Cy Young Award winner will defer $66 million through 2046 ($13 million per season) as part of his new deal.
“I got a $52 million signing bonus,” Boras said of Snell’s recent deal. “It’s all about a trade-off of value. You try to hear what teams need to do and what the need is, and you figure things out from there. … Some teams do (postponement) and some teams don’t. They really want to know what your preference is.”
Soto told reporters Thursday that he was intrigued by the potential dynasty the Mets could build. The 26-year-old standout from the Dominican Republic was personally hosted by Mets owner Steve Cohen at his Beverly Hills mansion — an intimate meeting that helped lure Soto from the Yankees.
Cohen has turned the club into one of the league’s top spenders since purchasing the team in 2020 as he looks to deliver the Mets their first World Series title since 1986.
“This was a competitive process,” Cohen said at the news conference. “There were many teams involved. It was difficult to know where you stood. It was a moving target and things were changing day by day. There are times when you start to wonder if you can be successful at this. Finally I got the call I wanted.”
Soto reportedly turned down a 16-year, $760 million offer from the Yankees, who recently fell to the Dodgers in the World Series. The Mets sweetened their winning contract offer to the star outfielder by offering personal security for his family for home and road games, as well as a luxury suite at Citi Field, according to the Associated Press. The Yankees did not offer a free suite, which is typical for the club, even for its biggest stars.
Soto, who said he hasn’t spoken to his former Yankees teammates since the World Series run, was drawn to the family-friendly atmosphere the Mets aim to provide. The combination of record money and the family care package was enough to seal the deal.
“They showed me a lot of love from the standpoint of how they would try to make me comfortable,” Soto added. “What impressed me is the way they are going to treat everyone around me, including my family. That’s one of the things I was looking for.”
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