After securing the richest contract in professional sports history — a 15-year, $765 million deal — Juan Soto is putting his money into continuing his legacy and taking care of his teammates.
Soto, who’s worn No. 22 his entire career, had a dilemma on how to acquire the jersey number with Mets third baseman Brett Baty, who wore the number prior to Soto’s arrival in Queens.
The two reached an agreement that had Baty driving off a happy Met.
On Thursday morning, Soto greeted Baty outside of the Mets spring training facility with a blacked-out Chevrolet Tahoe.
Soto, who met Baty in his white Mets uniform, had a special message written on the back windshield of the vehicle for the third baseman: “Thanks for #22.”
“I really appreciate the number,” Soto told Baty. “It’s the first one I ever wore.”
Before Soto’s arrival to the Mets, Baty wore the number. He has since changed his jersey number to No. 7, reflecting his fandom of shortstop Jose Reyes and former Minnesota Twins first baseman Joe Mauer.
Soto spent the 2024 season with the New York Yankees. In the Bronx, he had a .288 batting average, hit 41 homers — the fourth-best in the league — and tied for sixth in the majors in RBIs with 109.