Juan Soto's contract details with Mets magnify Padres' shrewd decision to trade him when they did

Juan Soto will now call Queens home — at least for the next five (and possibly 15) years. The former San Diego Padres slugger finally signed the mega-deal that all of baseball been talking about, and agreed to a 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets on Sunday night.

While New York Yankees' fans are smarting after watching their superstar outfielder leave for their intrastate rival, the Friar faithful have to feel pretty good about life post-Soto.

The Padres, of course, famously traded Soto to the Yankees about a year ago. In return, the Friars received Michael King, Drew Thorpe, Kyle Higashioka, Randy Vasquez, and Jhonny Brito. Trent Grisham was part of the Yankees' return. And while Higshioka is now part of the Texas Rangers, the Padres' willingness to part with Soto before his walk-year proved to be the right strategy.

Juan Soto's contract details with Mets magnify Padres' shrewd decision to trade him when they did

Soto's deal ecplises the $700 million contract signed by Shohei Ohtani last offseason and will pay him $305 million over the first five seasons. That includes a $75 million signing bonus and an opt-out after the 2029 season. The Mets can void the opt-out, but must add an additional $4 million to the remainder of Soto's deal, which would effectively turn it into a 15-year, $805 million contract. All of the sudden, Fernando Tatis Jr.'s 14-year, $340 million deal doesn't look so bad.

While there've been reports that San Diego would've worked out a contract extension with Soto had Padres' owner Peter Seidler not passed away, that $765 million number seems like one that the Friars would have been unable to match.

Now, the Padres find themselves with some financial constraints due to their own long-term payroll obligations. While San Diego was able to trade Soto last winter and effectively shed an enormous amount of salary, Padres President of Baseball Operations will likely have to do the same this offseason.

The MLB Winter Meetings begin today, and there are numerous negotiations that could be ahead for Preller and his team. With Soto now off the board, the rest of baseball can catch their breath. And while it would've been nice to have the slugger in a Padres uniform for the next decade-plus, at that price, San Diego was wise to get out when they did.

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