Francisco Lindor explains the Mets’ efforts to sign Juan Soto of the Yankees.
When Francisco Lindor recently admitted that it would be “fantastic” and “help us a lot” if the Mets could sign All-Star outfielder Juan Soto in free agency from the Yankees, it caused some eyebrows to raise.
In an interview with MLB insider Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic midweek, Lindor went into some detail regarding Soto’s hazy future.
“What I said about Soto is that I would love for him to break every [financial] record out there,” explained Lindor. “I hope he goes out there and receives what is rightfully his.” Amazing if he’s with us. It’s OK if he’s with someone else as long as he receives what he deserves.”
With a career-best season ahead of him and an October birthday, Soto reportedly wants to reset the market for position players. In an article that appeared in the New York Post on August 15, Jon Heyman revealed that at least one “expert” thinks Soto’s upcoming deal would be worth $600 million over the course of 12 years. Afterwards, according to a report by ESPN’s Jeff Passan, “high-ranking front office and ownership-level sources believe the winter for Soto is going to play out like this: Yankees versus Mets.”
“It’s wonderful,” Lindor said to Rosenthal, “that people in the Mets, like big-ticket owner Steve Cohen, “consider players’ advice” when it comes to decisions like basically giving Soto a blank check. Having said that, Lindor made it clear that he believes David Stearns, the president of baseball operations for the Mets, will make the best decisions going forward for the team.
In reference to Cohen paying Soto, Lindor remarked, “I don’t want it to come down to my decision.” “I want our company to make data-driven judgments, but I also want it to come from listening to a lot of other people, not just myself. That’s not the proper way to manage an organization.”
Cohen has the resources to pay more for a single player than any other MLB owner, including Hal Steinbrenner of the Yankees. Although Soto seems to enjoy playing for the Bronx Bombers, agent Scott Boras will probably be interested in hearing Cohen’s assessment of the slugger’s abilities after the World Series.
