"You are old fashioned" - Juan Soto receives support from former Padres OF amid criticism over possible historic $700M contract
Juan Soto's contract bids seemed to have soared way past the $600 million and is expected to touch the astronomical $700 million mark set by Shohei Ohtani last season. There have been some doubts in the baseball community as to whether the Dominican deserves to earn the amount he is being offered.
On Thursday, an X user (@primetimesc2) posted Juan Soto's stats. He tried to drive home the point that the outfielder earning an above-par batting average and hitting 35 home runs per season isn't close to getting $700 million as a justified contract.
"Call me old-fashioned but I can’t bring myself to understand giving a career .285 hitter who averages 25 homers a season a contract worth $700,000,000.00," the user wrote.
Brent Rooker took exception to the statement. He openly called out the man for his flawed argument (Soto averages 35 home runs per 162 games, not 25). Rooker and Soto were close to being teammates at the San Diego Padres during the 2022 season, but as Soto arrived on August 2, Rooker was traded to the Royals.
"You’re old fashioned and also not good at math," Rooker wrote.
Which statistics define Juan Soto's contract values?
Statistics are a reflection of how good a player is. In Juan Soto's case just taking a look at the batting average and home run prowess doesn't paint the entire picture.
Soto has an exceptional walk rate, an 18.8% clip that is the second highest of all-time behind Ted Williams, with a minimum of 1,000 plate appearances through the age-25 season. He has the most walks in the history of the game for any batter at 25 with 769 walks till the 2024 regular season, outpacing Yankees legend Mickey Mantle (670), per MLB.com's Mike Petriello.
His walks have thus helped his .421 On-Base Percentage, which is the best in MLB since he made his debut in 2018. His OBP+, 131, is also the third highest of all time through age 25 behind Hall of Famers Williams and Frank Thomas.
The 4x All-Star is a strong, potent at-bat that is hard to get out, rarely strikes out and will most likely be on base by the time the next batter is at the plate. As an outfielder, he has amassed a 36.2 WAR through age 25 which is the 17th highest in history.
Moreover, the main factor driving his price is age. At just 26 years old, Juan Soto will be able to dedicate his prime to the team he will be joining. For the next decade and a few more years, Soto could become the face of the organization. If a team is built around him, he can win them championships.
Thus all these count towards teams wanting to spend such a huge amount of money for the player.