It was an appropriate setting for a monumental day in Mets history.
As generational slugger Juan Soto was introduced on Thursday at Citi Field, his news conference took place not in the regular press room at ground level but on the Excelsior level in the Piazza club.
The seismic nature of the signing and the player necessitated the extra room, and Soto looked calm and comfortable in his new surroundings as he took questions from reporters while sitting next to beaming owner Steve Cohen, president of baseball operations David Stearns, and his agent, Scott Boras, in front of a packed club that was buzzing.
Of course, one of the main questions people wanted to know was why Soto chose the Mets instead of the Yankees, Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Dodgers. What, aside from the massive contract, set them apart?
And as he answered, Soto kept coming back to two main themes: what he thinks the Mets’ future will be like and what the overall experience is going to be for him and his family.
“When I look at my family, I think they’re gonna have the best time,” Soto said. “That’s what I look at — what they showed me. They always talk about family. They always talk about sticking together and things like that. That’s one of the things that opened my eyes, and decided with my family. That’s when I started thinking about all the love that it can give me. For me and my family.”
Added Soto: “They showed me a lot of love from the standpoint of what they have for me, and how they’re going to try to make it comfortable for me. That’s one of the things that impressed me more — how they’re gonna treat everybody around me and my family and stuff like that. That’s one of the things I was looking for. At the end of the day, you’re trying to be comfortable where you’re at and have a good time.
“The money standpoint definitely is gonna be there. It’s gonna come. It’s always great. But definitely, I was really impressed with what they showed me that they can do with my family and stuff like that.”
When it comes to what the Mets have done on the field and what is expected in the future under Cohen, Stearns, and Co., Soto said that he noticed what was going on in Queens last year while across town in the Bronx.
“What they have done the last couple of years, showing the ability to keep winning, to keep growing a team, to try to grow a dynasty, is one of the most important things,” Soto said. “Definitely what you were seeing from the other side was unbelievable in the past. And everything on the field, and the future that this team has. It has a lot to do with my decision.”
Soto also took note of “how the organization runs things.”
“How they’re going to manage things and how they look at their future I think was one of the things that opened my eyes a little bit more,” he explained. “What they’ve been constructing and building to take all the way. All the way up to 15 years, 20 years — you never know. I think that was one of the things that opened my eyes more. How hungry they are to win a championship, to want to make a dynasty.”
After it came down to the Mets and Yankees as the last two teams standing for Soto’s services, some expressed surprise that Soto chose the team from Queens — especially since the guaranteed offers were only $5 million apart.
But to hear Soto speak on Thursday, it was clear that he bought what the Mets were selling. And why not? They have an up-and-coming family-first organization coming off a run to the NLCS. They also have a rising farm system, a well-respected president of baseball operations, a unifying manager in Carlos Mendoza, and the wealthiest owner in the sport — who has a burning desire to build a perennial contender.
As the Mets’ offseason continues, there will be more to come as they look to build a team that takes the next step in 2025. But Thursday was all about Soto, whose presence has already changed everything.
