The MLB offseason was headlined by Juan Soto signing a massive 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets, and Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper said he was not surprised by that, pointing out that the more shocking aspect is what other players, like New York Yankees star Aaron Judge, make in comparison.
“It’s the name of the game now,” Bryce Harper said, via Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. “Guys are getting what they’re worth. It more shocks me that a guy like Aaron Judge didn’t get more than what he got (nine years, $360 million), or certain pitchers. You look at certain players and see what they’re doing and you can expect them to be in that tier of money. … Those are the things that shock me more than what Soto gets. I think Bobby Witt (11 years, $288.78 million) could have gotten that, somewhere near there. Same thing with Gunnar (Henderson). There are a lot of guys in our game now who are going to be up there.”
Judge signed his nine-year, $360 million contract with the Yankees in the winter of 2022 after winning the MVP Award and breaking the American League home run record. It is worth noting that he reportedly turned down bigger contract offers from the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants to stay with the Yankees. Judge also hit free agency after his age-30 season, while Soto did after his age-25 season. Soto, the younger player, got the longer deal.
Bobby Witt Jr., mentioned by Harper as well, signed an extension early, so he did not have the opportunity to hit the open market. He would undoubtedly have made more if he had waited. He signed his extension before the 2024 season, which was MVP-caliber. Henderson is a young player who is on track to get a large deal one day.
Soto’s deal was unprecedented, and it will be interesting to see the next players to get historic deals in MLB free agency in the coming years. Next offseason, Kyle Tucker and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. headline the class.
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