As the New York Mets gear up for Opening Day, another in a long line of Juan Soto storylines has emerged via Joel Sherman of The New York Post.
Soto's exit from the Bronx was messy, with reports emerging that despite the Yankees best efforts (and ultimately offering a similar if not larger contract), the 26-year-old signed crosstown. He also evidently had an ax to grind over at least one Yankees policy, namely that he wasn't provided with a personal suite for his friends and family.
"The Yankees felt they couldn’t give a suite to Soto when Judge pays for his suite, and even Derek Jeter paid. They were willing to discount a suite but not alter their precedent," Jon Heyman wrote at the time. Heyman also added that some Yankees security workers kept members of Soto's inner circle from the team facility. These annoyances, while small in nature, can add up.
The Yankees do not provide player suites, as the vast majority of those are rented out well in advance. Soto wasn't pleased, though it's highly unlikely that policy in particular swayed him to the Mets. The breadcrumbs dropped by Soto's camp after signing with the Mets felt like he was trying to control the narrative. The Yankees have, for the most part, played it cool and not taken shots at Soto. However, Sherman's report suggests they didn't forget.
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Yankees have no plans to provide a Juan Soto video tribute
Per Sherman, there are no plans for a Yankees video tribute for Soto prior to his first game back at Yankee Stadium as a member of the Mets. Sherman took the Yankees side in this matter, claiming that tribute videos have 'gotten out of hand.'
"I just want to state that tribute videos and number retirements are getting out of hand. Both used to go to only the most deserving of the most deserving. Now, number retirements have become like bobblehead dolls — designed to build attendance for a date as much as truly honor history," Sherman wrote.
The Post columnist compared Soto's return to the Bronx to that of Blake Griffin, who received a tribute in his first game back against the Brooklyn Nets. If you forgot Griffin played for the Nets at all, you are not alone.
However, this is a little disingenuous. Soto led the Yankees to a World Series in his only season with the team. Sure, the run may have been brief, but it was filled with memories New Yorkers will never forget. It's not like Soto signed with the Red Sox and fired shots at the Yankees all winter.
Refusing to acknowledge his time with the team is petty, and a bad look for a team always in the mix for top free agents and trade targets.