Baseball world reacts to Juan Soto deal

Juan Soto was the talk of the Winter Meetings on Monday at the Dallas Hilton Anatole. The slugger’s 15-year, $765 million agreement with the Mets has MLB buzzing.

The suspenseful pursuit of Soto was a bidding war between the two New York teams, Boston and Toronto. All four times did their best to woo the young slugger by negotiating their best deal in terms of years, money and advertising their city’s amenities. 

The 26-year-old right fielder left many jaws dropped when he agreed to the Mets’ 15-year $765 million contract. Soto’s deal is the biggest contract in all sports.

He surpassed Shohei Othani’s 10-year $700 million contract that he signed a year ago. The four-time All-Star agreed to the contract prior to the 2024 Baseball Winter Meetings, which left many managers impressed.

Carlos Mendoza skirts Soto questions

Although Mets manager Carlos Mendoza is surely eager to have Soto inserted in his lineup, he jokingly stated that the addition of a starting pitcher was his favorite acquisition thus far.

Nonetheless, adding the five-time Silver Slugger reinforces the Mets’ line up.

“Yeah, obviously you play with a lot of different scenarios,” Mendoza said. “but … you need a deep lineup. One through nine, you need to have balance. You need to have a lot. So it’s not just about one or two guys. 

“I’m lucky to have — you mentioned three really good hitters. And (Brandon) Nimmo, (Francisco) Lindor, (Mark) Vientos. Don’t forget about Francisco Alvarez. Those are some of the guys that are on our roster that are elite leaders, you know?”

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Dave Martinez, who was Soto’s manager with the Nationals, had the chance to see Soto develop. He managed the 6-foot-2 slugger in his rookie season. They also won the 2019 World Series when they defeated the Houston Astros in seven games. Soto played two more years under Martinez before he was traded to the Padres. 

Coming into the league, Martinez had high expectations for Soto. Martinez even noticed he had similarities to the all-time home run leader Barry Bonds.

’Different’

“This kid, he was different,” he said about Soto. “The ball comes off his bat differently. The way he approaches the hitting was way different than a lot of kids I’ve seen.

“But the one thing that I always remember about him, the first conversation I had, the first thing that came out of his mouth when I asked him what motivates him, what drives him, and he just came out and said, I love baseball.”

Brewers manager Pat Murphy now has to face the 2022 Home Run Derby champ a lot more often. However, when he saw the Mets sign Soto for a contract with that magnitude he was hopeful they would beat the Mets a few times. 

“I was kind of happy because they can’t sign too many more guys,” Murphy joked. “They’re going after it. And it just kind of reminds you that, that’s what we’re in. This is a deal where there’s 30 clubs and they’re all trying to win. They’re all trying to do whatever it takes legally to do it.”

Red Sox manager Alex Cora was impressed with Soto. 

“The kid, he gets it,” Cora said. “He gets it. Let me put it that way. Obviously I always have fun with the group that represents him. You guys know how I feel about them, but it was a good experience, and I learned a lot. I learned a lot.”

“It’s good for baseball. That’s the way I see it. I think everybody was waiting for this to happen, and obviously it was interesting the way everybody reacted when we were in the restaurant.”

A few other managers were also stunned by the amount of money offered in the deal. 

“I was shocked when I saw the bonus,” Reds manager Terry Francona said. “My goodness. … I wasn’t probably following as close as maybe you guys were because I didn’t really think we were going to sign him, so kind of looking at other stuff.”

’Happy’ for Soto

Juan Soto’s deal left some in a bit of disbelief.

“I’m kind of numb to it,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “I’ve seen the teams do all that. You know what, we still have to play all those games. I’m happy for the individuals that are rewarded for what they’ve done. It’s great. We’re in a great business. Big game for these guys.”

Giants manager Bob Melvin, who was Soto’s manager with the Padres, was happy for Soto.

“Wow!” Melvin said. “We knew it was going to be a lot of money and a lot of years based on what he has accomplished in his career and how young he is still, but it’s phenomenal. I mean, for him, I’m happy for him. 

“I got to know him pretty well in San Diego. This was a year that he was setting himself up for this type of deal. I don’t know that anybody could have really predicted what the number would be, but if anybody is going to get money like that, it’s going to be Juan. He’s one of the premiere players in the game.”