Soto turns heads as he arrives at Mets camp: 'You could just feel it'

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Depending on the estimation, it had been at least a decade -- maybe two, maybe more -- since a spectacle of this caliber had arrived in Port St. Lucie.

When Juan Soto stepped out of his car at the Mets’ Clover Park complex on Sunday, he was greeted by a cameraman who had been staking out the scene since 6:30 a.m. Hours later, as Soto exited the clubhouse to walk to a backfield, about two dozen media members, photographers and team staffers formed a wake behind him. A member of Soto’s agency, the Boras Corporation, was on hand to shadow him throughout the day. Even as Soto stretched, hundreds of fans lined a chain-link fence to watch.

“Welcome to the team!” one of them shouted. “Bring us the glory!”

Here in mid-February, his 15-year journey with the organization just beginning, Soto can only achieve so much. Eventually, owner Steve Cohen told him during their contract negotiations, the hope is for multiple World Series during Soto’s tenure. But these early days of Spring Training are more about forging relationships, growing comfortable -- and, yes, making a good first impression.

“There’s a lot more cameras,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “As soon as he stepped on the field, he was walking toward the cage, you could just feel it. And when he stepped in that batting cage with all the boys who were there … heads turned around. It was like, ‘OK. Here he is.’”

The crowd that had followed Soto in the morning eventually processed into the stadium to watch his first batting practice session, which featured all the bangs and booms one might expect. Almost immediately, Soto cranked a ball four-fifths of the way up the batter’s eye screen in straightaway center field. Later, he appeared displeased by his swing on another pitch that wound up clearing the fence.

“I mean, he’s just a monster,” hitting coach Jeremy Barnes said.

In recent history, at least, the Mets have not had many introductions like this. Francisco Lindor’s arrival in 2021 was a big deal, certainly, but it happened amidst the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, in front of mostly empty backfields. Yoenis Céspedes’ sports cars and horses created a Spring Training spectacle last decade, but he wasn’t new to the Mets at that point, and his performances mostly occurred in restricted areas.

The last time a player’s mere presence caused such a disturbance may have been back in 2008, when Johan Santana arrived via trade in the prime of his career, advertised as a savior. Much like Santana, Soto is joining one of the best teams in baseball. The fact that he’s here suggests the Mets should only be better in 2025 than they were last year, when they came within two wins of the National League pennant.

But nothing is guaranteed, as Santana and the Mets rather painfully came to learn. No correlation exists between February spectacles and October glories, which is why Soto spent most of his 20-minute press conference Sunday trying to shepherd everyone back into reality.

“I don’t think I have to be The Guy,” he said, referencing a clubhouse full of All-Stars.

“I’m not trying to do more than I’ve done in the past,” Soto added. “I’m just going to keep [being] the same guy, try to do the same thing I’ve been doing year after year.”

Of course, what Soto has been doing is historic. Still just 26, he boasts a higher career on-base percentage than anyone other than Mickey Mantle or Jimmie Foxx did at that age (minimum 3,000 PA). Of the 10 active players with at least 200 homers, 500 RBIs and 700 walks, Soto is the youngest by more than six full years. Most of the others on the list are pushing 40.

“He’s different,” Barnes said. “Everything about him is different. You don’t get that kind of contract unless you’re different.”

“That contract” is a $765 million deal that blows away the earnings of any other player in baseball -- even Shohei Ohtani, whose $700 million pact contains enough heavy deferrals to make it worth far, far less in real-world money. Two winters ago, the Dodgers acquired Ohtani in hopes that he could turn a very good team into an absurdly good one. He succeeded.

If Soto can do the same, the crowds surrounding him will only grow as this foreign new world slowly becomes home.

“I’m really happy to know where I’m going to be for the next 15 years, and I’m more than excited to spend it with this group of guys,” Soto said. “I’ve only heard great things about them. Let’s see how everything goes.”