This article is part of our Hot Stove Takes series, where staffers provide quick reactions to the latest notable MLB transactions. Below are our thoughts on Juan Soto Record contract for 15 years and $765 million.

Emma Baccellieri: Juan Soto is a hitter like no other of his generation. He’s a 26-year-old modern-day Ted Williams. The last few months have been rife with debate about how difficult it might be to accurately assess these skills. But even after so much debate and analysis, it still felt completely overwhelming to see the final number here. A $765 million contract would have been one thing. (An extremely big deal.) But a $765 million contract with no deferred money, a signing bonus, multiple performance upgrades, a player opt-out And a 15 year term?

It’s not only the biggest contract in the history of the sport, but also the boldest.

This highlights some points we already knew. Mets boss Steve Cohen is the richest team owner in the MLB and is very motivated to win. Adding a hitter like Soto to a roster that was just two wins away from a trip to the World Series puts the Mets in a good position. Finishing the next few years with less than one title will be viewed as a failure. Oh, and one more thing: It could be a very long winter for the Yankees, who lost out here despite offering a reported $760 million.

APSTEIN: Juan Soto’s confidence pays off with record contract in the MLB

Nick Same: Steve Cohen has been on the hunt for big fish since taking over the Mets in 2020, and on Sunday night he finally caught the big fish. By poaching Soto from the rival Yankees, the Mets have followed Steinbrenner’s example and simply poured more money into their problems. This time it could actually be the difference in ending the franchise’s four-decade World Series drought.

As was the case with Shohei Ohtani last winter, there has never been a free agent like Soto. Players don’t often hit the open market at age 26, and you can count the number of hitters who have matched Soto’s resume at that age on one hand, maybe two. In seven seasons, Soto has reached base at a .421 clip, hit 201 home runs, made four All-Star teams, won a batting title, finished in the top 10 in MVP voting five times and has one Won World Series. Since his rookie year, he has led the league in walks three times and has played at least 150 games in every non-shortened season.

The Yankees need to retool and restock their lineup, which now has a huge hole to fill. And the Mets are not automatically the favorites in the National League either. But the impact of this deal will last for quite some time – as will, I’m sure, the satisfaction of Mets fans that they outbid the Yankees for a generational superstar in his prime.

And now there is a new king of queens.

Laws of will: Records are meant to be broken, but the record Juan Soto just set should stand for a long time.

The circumstances surrounding Soto’s free agency — his immense talent and young age, the two New York teams being encouraged into a bidding war, Shohei Ohtani setting the bar high last season — will be difficult to replicate. And there isn’t a player with Soto’s credentials that will be hitting free agency any time soon (though that’s true for almost every period in MLB history).

Is that an overpayment? Probably. It feels a little strange that Soto is outperforming Ohtani considering his tackling prowess. And Ohtani simply surpassed Soto in WAR in a season where he was limited to hitting.

But that shouldn’t matter to the richest MLB owner, and it certainly shouldn’t bother Mets fans. And since the Yankees reportedly offered Soto $760 million over 16 years, it would take something like that to lure him across town. Now that this is the case, the Mets can no longer be viewed as the Yankees’ harmless little brothers.