Mets played dirty and used Juan Soto's months-old Yankees grudge against them

The New York Yankees lost Juan Soto at the buzzer – quite literally – as the 26-year-old and his agent Scott Boras wanted him to sign before the MLB Winter Meetings. Soto achieved that just past 10 p.m. ET on Sunday night, inking a 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets.

The New York Yankees fell just short in their offer, as they were willing to pay Soto for another year, but less AAV. The difference between a 15-year deal and a 16-year contract are minimal for Soto, who took the Mets at their word and ran.

There were many factors in said negotiations, but the expectation was always that Soto would have to decide between the Yankees and Mets. Leaving the Bronx felt like an insurmountable task as talks began, but eventually Soto found a dollar figure and franchise he valued, and it wasn't the Yankees. Soto has always been the prize Steve Cohen was after. The billionaire and richest owner in baseball put his money where his mouth is.

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Mets used Juan Soto's grievance against Yankees to their advantage

There's little the Yankees did wrong in this instance. They went above and beyond their budget to keep Soto, and offered to pay him almost double the likes of Aaron Judge, who is their captain. It still wasn't enough. As much as Soto enjoyed being a Yankees, there was one aspect of the job he still held a grudge against.

Per Jon Heyman, an overzealous Yankees security kept members of Soto's inner circle from areas of the team facility.

Now, it's unlikely that Soto let this impact his decision making, but it's further evidence that the Mets used their intelligence to find any cracks in the star's relationship with the Yankees. The Mets entered the Soto sweepstakes at a disadvantage, as they weren't the incumbent. Cohen wasn't afraid to play dirty.