How Juan Soto quickly began fitting in with Mets after signing historic contract

All-Star outfielder Juan Soto became a larger-than-life figure in the eyes of New York Mets fans almost immediately after he put pen to paper on his historic 15-year, $765M contract that could exceed $800M total.

In a lengthy piece published on Thursday, ESPN's Jeff Passan detailed how Soto quickly embraced an opportunity to fit in as a member of the Mets roster and set an example for younger players. 

"Earlier this spring," Passan noted, "the Mets set up an optional bunting station that hitters could visit to work on their technique. Perhaps no one should have been surprised that Soto ambled over and spent 15 minutes there. He is an excellent bunter who stole four hits last year pushing the ball away from shifted fielders. But a number of people in the Mets organization were nevertheless pleasantly surprised: If the highest-paid player in sports history can work on rarely used fundamentals, what is anyone else's excuse to skip the bunting station?"

That makes for a nice story, but Mets fans expect much more from Soto than behind-the-scenes leadership. Fortunately for those supporters, he's no stranger to facing the type of pressure that comes with being asked to guide a franchise to its first World Series title since 1986. 

Soto famously rejected a 15-year, $440M contract extension proposal from the Washington Nationals back in the summer of 2022. As The Athletic's Will Sammon mentioned, Soto again bet on himself when he decided he would enter free agency this past fall before he ever played a single game with the New York Yankees. 

According to ESPN stats, Soto finished the 2024 regular season fourth in all of MLB with 41 home runs, tied for sixth with 109 RBI, third with a .989 OPS and second with 129 walks. Per Baseball Reference, his wins above replacement number of 7.9 was the sixth highest for the campaign. 

On Thursday morning, Jayson Stark of The Athletic pointed out that Soto can become the first player in history to post at least one 40-home-run season with both the Yankees and the Mets. Per Passan's piece, Soto listed a different goal during offseason negotiations with Mets owner Steve Cohen.

"I want to be the best hitter of all time," Soto said at that time. 

Ahead of New York's Opening Day game at the Houston Astros, DraftKings Sportsbook had Soto second among the betting favorites at +550 odds to claim the National League Most Valuable Player Award for this season. Mets fans likely will be delighted if the 26-year-old remains in MVP discussions through the summer.