Washington Nationals superstar outfielder Juan Soto turned down a 13-year, $350 million extension offer from the Nationals before the lockout began, according to ESPN Deportes reporter Enrique Rojas.
At 23, Soto has finished top 10 in MVP voting the last three seasons and has two silver slugger awards to go with it. He finished second in the MVP race in 2021 to the Phillies Bryce Harper.
Soto has already proved himself to be one of the best and most disciplined hitters in all of baseball. He has led the majors in on-base percentage the last two seasons and was the National League batting champion in 2020.
Soto is not scheduled to be a free agent until 2025 when he’ll turn 26. Soto has two years of arbitration remaining in 2023 and 2024.
It’s not unrealistic that Soto could sign the largest contract in American sports history when the time comes. Football quarterback Patrick Mahomes set the record last year by signing a 10-year $503 million deal. Although, Mahomes’ contract isn’t fully guaranteed like baseball deals are. Mike Trout has the richest contract in baseball history at 12-years and $426.5 million.
Why Soto could be the first to reach those heights is because his top competitors for deals in that price range have already signed extensions. Fernando Tatis Jr. and the Padres agreed to a 14-year, $340 million extension last season and Ronald Acuna Jr. won’t be a free agent again until 2029 if he plays out his full eight-year, $100 million contract.
Max Scherzer is presently set to make $43 million next season from the Mets. By the time 2025 rolls around, if Soto is healthy his worth could be north of $50 million per season. It’s obviously unknown right now if the Nationals or any team is willing to go that high but Soto clearly doesn’t see himself valued highly enough as a $27 million per year player.
The Mets only have two players under contract for 2025 with Francisco Lindor and Starling Marte. The other five – Luis Guillorme, Tylor Megill, Jake Reed, Sean Reid-Foley, Thomas Szapucki – are all set for arbitration.
If the Mets’ top prospects like Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio, Francisco Alvarez, and Mark Vientos pan out, it’s possible New York could make a run at Soto with the value rookie contracts provide. It also can’t hurt to have the richest owner in baseball either.
Washington still has a long time to figure things out with Soto. If they can’t field a contender by then don’t be surprised to hear rumors he wants out popping up.
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