Last winter, the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Shohei Ohtani to a $700 million contract. It was, by far, the largest deal across any of the major sports leagues, and it immediately paid off. Ohtani won MVP, the Dodgers won the World Series, and a good time was had by all (at least within the Dodgers organization). Ohtani’s deal seemed astronomical; such a rich contract felt like a rarity for a once-in-a-lifetime player. And yet, it took only one season for someone else to top that number.
The New York Mets and Juan Soto agreed to a whopping 15-year, $765 million contract. It’s both the longest and largest deal in MLB history, and it might be even larger than Ohtani’s at first glance.
The Dodgers are deferring a lot of Ohtani’s contract until many years from now to help with salaries for other players. Because of that, MLB values Ohtani’s deal at around $460 million, factoring in inflation. Soto’s deal has no deferrals, though he can opt out after the 2029 season, the fifth year of the contract.
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That opt out will come into play if the Mets don’t raise his annual contract value by the sixth season. Including a $75 million signing bonus, Soto will make $305 million during his first five years with the Mets.
Soto will team up with another superstar, shortstop Francisco Lindor. Mets owner Steve Cohen traded for Lindor and eventually signed him to a long-term deal worth $341 million over 10 seasons. That means the Mets have committed over $1.1 billion to two players.
Yet, Soto wasn’t going to settle for anything less. He played with the New York Yankees last season; the Bronx Bombers reportedly put a 16-year, $760 million offer on the table—and Soto turned it down.
Just two and a half years ago, Soto was playing for the Washington Nationals. The team offered him a $440 million contract, but he said no, hoping to get more money later and wind up on a more competitive team.
The Nationals traded him to the San Diego Padres during that 2022 season. Despite some impressive moments and a strong 2023 campaign, Soto never fully found a comfortable groove in San Diego. The team traded him to the Yankees before this season, and he played well under the bright lights as the team reached the World Series.
It took a couple of seasons, but securing an extra $325 million is a shrewd move from Soto and agent Scott Boras. And the Mets reached the NLCS this year, losing to the champion Dodgers. It’s a team looking to win now and clearly not afraid to spend to make it happen.
Turning down close to half a billion dollars might seem crazy, but Juan Soto has never shied away from a challenge. In most cases, it works out quite well for him.