Juan Soto (27, New York Mets) has been completely humiliated. Despite signing the biggest 15-year contract of 765 million dollars in North American professional sports, he was completely shunned by executives of major league teams.
Soto left the New York Yankees and entered the New York Mets in the 2024-2025 FA market. It was symbolic that he overcame Shohei Ohtani. He is not a pitcher, nor is he good at defense or base running. However, some say that he is capable of signing a contract given that he is still in his 20s and has good durability in terms of being the best OPS type left-handed slugger in the Major League.
However, Soto had a bad first month in this season. He had a batting average of 0.258 with five homers, 14 RBIs, 24 runs on-base plus 0.379 in 33 games through Sunday (Korea time). Since his debut with the Washington Nationals in 2018, there was never a season when his on-base percentage exceeded 40%. It was only one season in which his OPS failed to surpass 0.9. At the beginning of the season, Soto is not comparable to Soto at all. 메이저사이트
MLB.com recently conducted a survey to team executives to look back on the opening month. On the same day, executives' thoughts on who was the best FA contractor last winter were made public. None of the 20 players chose Soto. It is a disgrace and shock to Soto.
Alex Bregman of the Boston Red Sox got eight votes, Nick Pivetta of the San Diego Padres got four votes, and Pete Alonso of the New York Mets got three votes. Carson Kelly of the Chicago Cubs, Jose Planco of the Seattle Mariners, and Sasaki of the Los Angeles Dodgers each got one vote. In other words, Bregman is the best free agent.
MLB.com clearly attributed the New York Mets' performance to Alonso, not Soto. In fact, Alonso will hit 0.345 with eight home runs, 30 RBIs, 23 runs scored, and OPS 1.137 in 33 games this season. Although he was in labor last winter, he signed a two-year, $54 million contract to prove that he is a player who can sign a bigger contract. He is the No. 1 player in the National League with 11 doubles, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS+ (220). To be clearer, the Mets' good early days of the season were due to the salty mound.
"In the free agent (FA) class last winter, Soto signed a historic 15-year, $765 million contract with the Mets," MLB.com said. "To reach that number, we need to add the guaranteed amount to the next four free agent contracts, and a little more than a month after the 2025 season began, is Soto's contract the largest dividend payment?"
MLB.com continued, "Soto is not up to his usual level, but the Mets are still No. 1 in the NL East. What's the main reason for their strong start? It's not Soto, it's another free agent Pete Alonso, who signed this winter. Alonso's two-year, $54 million contract is paying $30 million this season with a $24 million player option in 2026, proving to be just as important as any contract signed in the winter."
An American League executive said, "The Mets have assessed the market properly and were able to sign a short-term contract with Alonso." "He's off to a good start, and given the level of production, I think it was a good opportunity for the Mets," said an National League executive.