HOUSTON — Precisely one 12 months after Juan Soto got here to this very metropolis to start out what could be a largely triumphant however decidedly truncated Yankees profession, he arrived as a Met, the highest-paid participant ever, and with a contract 15 instances longer.
Which wasn’t a shock to many who foresaw Mets proprietor Steve Cohen’s resolve and largesse profitable the massive free agent prize. Nevertheless it was to Cohen himself, who lived the drawn-out drama. Not as soon as however twice Cohen figured he was out of the working.
The primary time occurred on the first of three rounds of bidding, when the Mets supplied about $492 million — $41M a 12 months for 12 years. That determine got here from Mets’ metrics and fashions, and didn’t appear unreasonable contemplating all-everything Shohei Ohtani’s closely deferred $700M deal was value round $465M. Pretty, too, a number of groups began in that very same neighborhood, with the shocking Jays taking an early financial lead.
Anyway, Cohen was shocked when Soto’s agent Scott Boras known as to say he wasn’t within the ballpark. After 24 hours to get better, replicate and revise, Cohen known as again, promising to do higher, and retaining the Mets among the many last 5, with additionally the Purple Sox, Dodgers and Yankees.
