Things happen when they have to happen, and the timing is perfect, so in baseball nothing is a coincidence, because each of the movements of the teams brings a lot of prior study, a calculated prospecting, especially because of the great investment that is made in each offseason with a view to a new opportunity in the following season.
Sooner or later, Soto would be a Met
The New York Mets know this very well, as the team studiedJuan Soto for a long time and knew long before he was available in free agency that the Dominican would become a Met sooner or later
The Queens team eventually won the race to land the most sought-after free agent, to the surprise of the New York Yankees, who in their quest to retain him lost sight of the fact that the player did want to stay in the Big Apple, so he listened to what the Mets had for him. It was just a matter of choosing based on the offer.
In the end, the All-Star outfielder decided to change boroughs and make the trip from the Bronx to Queens, thanks to a record $765 million contract, which by the way was not the highest he was offered, according to the player himself on Abriendo Sports.
The Mets’ top brass already had him in their sights
In turn, Mets president David Stearns revealed for the Mets documentary and their bid for Soto ‘The Pursuit’ that they had been following the player for some time and foresaw his free agency: “I think Juan Soto has been on everyone’s radar for a long time. We knew that, in time, Soto would be available to all thirty Major League teams“.
For his part, Mets owner Steve Cohen revealed that he also had Soto in his sights and had even talked about the player with Stearns during his 2023 season with the San Diego Padres: “Actually, I think it started from the beginning, when David and I met. We talked about Juan as a possibility when he would be available.”
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