Juan Soto's top priority is great news for the Mets — and bad news for the Red Sox

From even before the 2024 season ended, there's been an inexhaustible supply of speculation as to where Juan Soto would sign this winter. He's going to stay with the New York Yankees; no, he's headed to the crosstown Mets. He hates the West Coast; he's open to the West Coast. You name it, and chances are some unnamed source somewhere will back it up.

But amid all that noise, there's been precious little insight into what Soto himself is actually looking for as he gets set to sign what might well be the richest contract in MLB history. Soto just turned 26, he's already one of the best hitters in the game and he's already got a World Series ring; what does a player like that want from the team he's presumably going to call home for the next decade-plus? We've been left to only guess so far.

Until Thursday night, that is, when Soto and agent Scott Boras sat down for an in-person meeting with Boston Red Sox brass in Southern California. And while we still don't know where he'll sign in the end, we finally caught a glimpse of what's most important to him in free agency. It might give Boston pause, but it should have at least a couple teams grinning ear-to-ear.

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Juan Soto sheds light on his wish list during Red Sox visit

According to MassLive, the meeting included team president Sam Kennedy, chairman Tom Werner (standing in for owner John Henry), chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and manager Alex Cora. The meeting last about three hours, and while no financial details were exchanged, Soto was reportedly "impressed" by Boston's presentation, which included everything from the team's plans for the future to its impressive haul of near-MLB-ready prospects to even a video highlighting past Dominican stars like David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez.

But it was Soto's end of the questioning that's most noteworthy: "Soto wanted to know about the team’s commitment to winning, player evaluation methods and Fenway Park and its facilities."

Soto may already have one World Series title, but after falling just short of another with the Yankees this season, it appears that consistent contention is at the top of his wish list. And for all the momentum the team has built in the Soto sweepstakes in recent days, that should have Red Sox fans feeling awfully antsy moving forward.

Juan Soto wants 'commitment to winning — which might spell doom for Boston

If this free agency comes down to which ownership group can convince Soto that it's most committed to winning, well, the Red Sox might be in trouble. While Henry diversifies his portfolio both at home and abroad, Boston's payroll has steadily slipped back toward the rest of the pack, sitting at 12th in the league in both 2023 and 2024. And while all indications are that this offseason is going to be different, we'll believe that when we see it. The fact is that, after three straight years missing the playoffs and failing to make any kind of big splash via trade or free agency, the Red Sox have forfeited the benefit of the doubt. Which could cost them against some of the other teams they'll be up against for Soto's services.

One team in particular comes to mind: the Mets, who are nothing under Steve Cohen's ownership if not "committed to winning". David Stearns seems to have greatly beefed up New York's previously moribund talent acquisition and development models — just look at all the talent, young and otherwise, that blossomed in Queens this past season — and no one has deeper pockets or more of a desire to see his team on top than Cohen. Soto should have every confidence that the Mets will have every resource needed to be successful as long as Cohen's around, and that's simply not something you can say about Boston right now. Heck, it might not even be something you can say about the Yankees, based on their recent stance toward going into the luxury tax.