Mets Reportedly Offer Juan Soto a Shocking $760 Million, Setting the Stage for a Record-Breaking Deal
The grand prize of the 2024 MLB free agent class, Juan Soto, has been making the rounds this week as he meets with potential suitors. According to reports, Soto has met with the Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox, and, most recently, the New York Mets. The Mets were expected to be serious contenders in the Soto sweepstakes, thanks primarily to the seemingly bottomless pockets of owner Steve Cohen. If reports are to be believed, those expectations were not misplaced.
“According to former MLB player Carlos Baerga,” MLB insider Héctor Gómez tweeted on Sunday, “the Mets’ initial offer to Juan Soto yesterday in LA was $760 million.” Ahead of the 25-year-old’s free agency, projections for Soto’s contract were generally in the range of $500 million to $600 million, with some predicting the $600 million threshold could be crossed as the winter goes on. The Mets’ reported $760 million offer, however, blows those expectations out of the water.
This colossal deal would make Soto’s contract not just the largest of the 2024 free-agent class, but also the second-largest in MLB history. At $760 million, it would surpass the previous benchmark of $700 million set by Shohei Ohtani’s deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers last offseason. The Mets’ offer is a testament to Steve Cohen’s commitment to building a championship-caliber roster, as the team looks to secure one of the game’s brightest stars for years to come.
While it remains to be seen whether Soto will accept the Mets’ proposal, one thing is clear: this new offer sets the bar incredibly high for the rest of the offseason. Soto’s decision is now arguably the most pivotal one of the entire free-agent market, and with such a massive contract reportedly on the table, the free-agent process could move much faster than anticipated.
Baseball fans will be eagerly watching to see if Soto makes a decision sooner than expected, as the long and often slow MLB offseason may soon come to an abrupt end with this record-breaking contract potentially rewriting the narrative of future free-agent negotiations.