Juan Soto and the New York Mets agreed to a record $765 million, 15-year contract Sunday night, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the agreement hadn't been announced and was subject to the completion of a successful physical.
It's the 12th contract worth at least $325 million in Major League Baseball. Here are the rest. Figures were obtained by The Associated Press from player and management sources and include all guaranteed income but not income from potential incentive bonuses. There is no distinction for deferred money:
Soto's deal easily surpassed Shohei Ohtani's $700 million agreement from the prior winter for what's believed to be the biggest in sports history, and Soto's contract doesn't include any deferred payments. He turned down Washington's $440 million, 15-year offer in 2022, was later traded to San Diego and then the New York Yankees before reaching free agency at just 26 years old. Soto is the most accomplished free agent at that age since shortstop Alex Rodriguez agreed to a record $252 million, 10-year contract with Texas in December 2000 at age 25.
Because it includes $680 million in deferred money payable from 2034-43, the deal Ohtani agreed to as a free agent is valued differently in various methods. For the luxury tax, it is discounted at 4.33% and listed as about $46.08 million annually. The players' association discounted it at 5% and valued it at approximately $43.7 million. For MLB regular payrolls, it is discounted 10% and listed at about $28.2 million.
Ohtani won his first World Series title and third MVP award in the deal's first year after hitting .310 with an NL-best 54 homers, 130 RBIs and 1.036 OPS. He stole 59 bases, becoming the first 50-50 player. He is expected to return to pitching in 2025 after recovering from elbow surgery.
Trout won his third AL MVP award in the first year of a contract agreed to in March 2019, but the 11-time All-Star has played in just 266 games over the last four seasons because of a strained right calf, back spasms, broken left hand and torn meniscus in left knee. His hitting .281 in six seasons of the contract with 138 homers, 306 RBIs and a .995 OPS.
Betts agreed to the deal in July 2020, five months after he was acquired from Boston, and helped the Dodgers win titles in 2020 and 2024. An eight-time All-Star, Betts is hitting .283 with 116 homers, 322 RBIs, 52 stolen bases and an .899 OPS in the first four years of the deal.
Judge agreed to the deal after becoming a free agent and then was appointed Yankees captain. Judge earned his fifth and sixth All-Star selections in the first two years of the contract, hitting .300 with 95 homers, 219 RBIs, 221 walks and an 1.104 OPS. He helped the Yankees reach the 2024 World Series, their first appearance since winning the 2009 title.
Machado signed a $300 million, 10-year contract with the Padres as a free agent in February 2019 that gave him the right to opt out after the 2023 season and forfeit $150 million. The Padres gave him the new deal in March 2023, raising their commitment to him to $470 million over 14 seasons. He has a .275 average with 167 homers and 536 RBIs in six seasons with the Padres, earning two All-Star selections that raised his career total to six. He has a .267 average with 59 homers and 196 RBIs in the first two seasons of his latest deal.
Acquired by the Mets from Cleveland in January 2021, Lindor agreed ahead of 2021 opening day to a 10-year deal that started in 2022. A four-time All-Star with Cleveland, he has yet to be picked for another All-Star Game with the Mets, although he was the NL MVP runner-up to Ohtani in 2024. He has a .259 average with 110 homers, 359 RBIs and 86 stolen bases with New York, including a .266 average with 90 homers, 296 RBIs and 76 steals under the multiyear deal.
Tatis was just 22 when he agreed in February 2021 to what was at the time the longest deal in baseball history. Tatis didn't play in 2022, first recovering from surgery for a broken left wrist sustained during a motorcycle accident, then for an 80-game suspension for a positive test for the performance-enhancing substance Clostebol; Tatis said he accidentally took a medication to treat ringworm that contained the banned substance. Since signing the contract, Tatis has hit .271 with 88 homers, 224 RBIs, 65 stolen bases and an .855 OPS.
A free agent at age 26, Harper agreed to the contract in February 2019. He won his second NL MVP award in 2021 and has twice been an All-Star for the Phillies, raising his total to eight. Harper is hitting .285 with 152 homers, 455 RBIs and a .924 OPS in 726 games over six years with the Phillies. The start of his 2023 season was delayed to May 2 following Tommy John surgery, an injury that caused the team to move him from right field to first base.
Stanton's contract was the largest and longest in baseball history when he and the Marlins agreed to the deal in November 2014, just after his 25th birthday. At the time, he wasn't due to become eligible for free agency until after the 2016 season. Stanton set career bests with 59 homers and 132 RBIs in 2017, then was traded to the Yankees in a deal in which the Marlins agreed to pay New York $30 million to cover a portion of the $295 million owed to Stanton during the next 10 years. Stanton has been on the injured list eight times in the last six seasons, missing 294 games because of injuries. In the contract's first decade, the five-time All-Star is hitting .249 with 275 homers, 704 RBIs and an .850 OPS.
Texas finalized Seager's deal on the eve of the 2021-22 lockout and he led the Rangers to their first World Series title in 2023, earning his second World Series MVP award after getting three homers and six RBIs against Arizona. He has a .280 average with 96 homers, 253 RBIs and an .875 OPS in the first three years of the contract.
His deal in December 2023 was the largest and longest for a pitcher in major league history. A right-hander who turned 26 in August, Yamamoto went 7-2 with a 3.00 ERA in 18 starts, sidelined between June 15 and Sept. 10 by triceps tightness. He was 2-0 with a 3.86 ERA in four postseason starts, beating the Yankees in Game 2 of the World Series.
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AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum contributed.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
