The keys to the Mets' pitch to Soto in free agency

This story was excerpted from Anthony DiComo’s Mets Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

NEW YORK -- Juan Soto reportedly met with Mets officials last weekend, part of a tour that has also included visits with executives from the Yankees, Red Sox and Blue Jays. If the history of Scott Boras’ clients is any guide, Soto probably won’t sign for at least another couple of weeks. But it’s clear the Mets will remain heavily involved in the process until the end.

While we don’t know exactly what their contract offer will look like, the core elements of their pitch are obvious:

1. Money

Isn’t it always largely about the money? Steve Cohen is Major League Baseball’s richest individual owner, and he sure does seem motivated to build a winner at any cost. Cohen’s Mets have led the league in payroll the past two seasons, including a record-setting number in 2023.

Neither he nor president of baseball operations David Stearns has given any indication that the team plans to step back this season, nor that it intends to drop under MLB’s highest Competitive Balance Tax threshold. All this suggests the Mets can be major players for Soto.

He won’t come cheap. Soto is at least going to want to approach, if not surpass Shohei Ohtani’s record $700 million contract, which is worth a little more than $46 million annually in present-day money after factoring in its heavy deferrals. If he also matches the length of Bryce Harper’s 13-year deal with the Phillies, Soto could draw contract offers north of $600 million in present-day money. It’s a figure that would probably keep the Mets over the CBT for a long time to come.

They don’t particularly seem to care. The Mets are one of the few teams in baseball that don’t appear to have limits in terms of their appetite to spend, both now and in the near-term future. That suggests a level of sustained competitiveness that should put them among the clear favorites to land Soto.

2. New York

By all accounts, Soto loves New York. Early in his Yankees tenure, Soto was spotted at a Washington Heights barbershop (with a David Wright jersey hanging on the wall, no less) alongside one of his teammates at 3 a.m. That neighborhood is, of course, a hotbed of Dominican culture. Asked on MLB Network earlier this year about playing in New York, Soto replied: “The truth is there’s a lot of Dominicans here. So many people that make it feel like home. That’s how I got so comfortable so quick.

“It’s just the way people treat you here. Just for being a Latin player, they just treat you like they are family. That’s what it’s all about.”

He’s handled the move to New York with aplomb. This city is littered with the histories of players who excelled elsewhere only to fall flat in the nation’s largest media market. Soto isn’t one of them. His first season in New York was, statistically, his finest as a big leaguer. And players who excel here tend to want to stay here.

3. Legacy

The Mets have not won a World Series in 38 years. A significant portion of their fan base has never seen them win one. If Soto joined the franchise and ended that drought, he would become a Queens legend along the lines of Tom Seaver, Keith Hernandez and Gary Carter.

Could the Yankees, with Aaron Judge as their face, match that sort of opportunity? Could the Red Sox, who have won four titles in the last 21 years? Could the Blue Jays, who run second to the Maple Leafs in the hearts of many fans?

True, the Mets have their own visible leaders in Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo (not to mention Pete Alonso, if he re-signs). But if Soto comes over on a significant free-agent contract and leads the Mets to glory, there would be no mistaking his impact. The closest comps would be Hernandez and Carter, two stars from other markets who became heroes in Queens.

This is a fan base starved for a title. Try telling Mets fans it wouldn’t mean a little bit more here than elsewhere.