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The Juan Soto saga continues on all fronts of the MLB spectrum. This time, some confusion came from Chris “Mad Dog” Russo. On ESPN's First Take, he was puzzled about why Soto would sign with the Mets after achieving success with the Yankees during his lone season with the franchise.
“Aaron Judge hitting behind him for crying out loud,” Russo said. “They got to the World Series, he hit a home run to beat the (Cleveland) Guardians. He left that because he wanted to get the average salary to $50 million, which is what the agent wanted to do, Scott Boras.
“To get that average annual salary and have the biggest contract in professional sports, I don’t quite understand that. The Mets are shocked. On Friday, they met Soto in Florida, and they thought there was no way he was coming to the Mets. Steve Cohen, to his credit, upped it to $765 (million), and low and behold, Soto took it.”
Russo makes an intriguing point about Soto's decision to leave the Yankees. He would've been the top guy behind Judge. Not to mention, Soto is only 26 years old, compared to Judge, being 32, and Giancarlo Stanton is 35. Although money talks, the Yankees offered a nearly identical offer sheet to their former slugger.
Why did Juan Soto leave the Yankees for the Mets?
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman offered Soto a 16-year, $760 million contract. However, the Mets swooped in with a 15-year, $765 million deal. Regardless of what contract he took, Soto would've signed the most lucrative contract in American professional sports.
Mets owner Steve Cohen has done whatever he can to make his franchise the talk of the MLB. Now, with Soto on their roster at a record-breaking contract, all eyes are on the Mets.
There's more to the story than simply chasing money. One of the more recent storylines is how a Yankees security guard prevented one of his family members and his chef/driver into certain areas of the stadium. Although it's a simple mistake, incidents like those can be the tip of the iceberg when deciding between teams.
Also, Soto can fit right into a team that needs that extra star. With Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso, he brings an addition of power. While he won't be playing with Stanton or Judge, he can play with a contending team. Not to mention, Soto isn't even leaving the state of New York. He's simply switching boroughs. The unexpected signing will have lasting effects for as long as Soto is a member of the Mets.
