Steve Phillips, a former general manager of the Mets from 1997 to 2003, is well-acquainted with the rivalry between the Mets and Yankees. During his tenure, he managed the team during the 2000 World Series, the first-ever showdown between the two New York teams, which ended with a Yankees victory.
Nowadays, Phillips watches the New York rivalry from afar as the Mets and Yankees compete to sign free agent slugger Juan Soto.
Soto is reportedly aiming for a 15-year contract worth at least $700 million, a deal that could potentially set new records in baseball for both duration and total value.
In December 2023, Shohei Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. However, due to deferred money in the deal, its current value is estimated at $437,830,563, according to the MLB Players Association’s calculations.
Negotiations typically don’t begin with the player’s initial asking terms. As teams start to make their offers, it will be interesting to see where they set the starting point for the bidding.
On Tuesday, Phillips shared on Twitter/X that his opening offer for Soto would be a 13-year contract worth $520 million, which would result in an average annual value of $40 million.
At 26, Soto is younger than most free agents. Over his seven seasons with the Washington Nationals, San Diego Padres, and New York Yankees, he has made four All-Star teams, won a World Series championship, and hit 201 home runs.
In 2024, Soto hit 41 home runs, scored an American League-leading 128 runs, drove in 109, and posted a .419 on-base percentage while batting ahead of Aaron Judge with the New York Yankees. He finished third in MVP voting, behind only Judge and Kansas City’s Bobby Witt Jr., and played a key role in helping the Yankees reach the World Series for the first time since 2009.
This month, five teams— the Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, New York Yankees, and Los Angeles Dodgers— met with Soto and his agent, Scott Boras, in Southern California. Each team reportedly sent a representative from ownership, along with a member of the baseball operations department (such as a president of baseball operations or general manager), and the team’s manager.
