Juan Soto has worn No. 22 since breaking into the big leagues with the Washington Nationals in 2018. But when he signed his $765 million deal with the New York Mets, there was one obstacle in the way of his keeping the number.
Brett Baty, a 25-year-old third baseman who has played parts of three seasons with the Mets, has worn No. 22 since he was called up in 2022. After a January conversation with Soto, the team’s 2019 first-round pick decided to give up his number, but it’s not that he won’t get something in return.
On Thursday, Soto delivered a brand-new SUV for Baty and presented it to him outside the team’s spring training facility.
Baty told reporters Thursday that he had been driving a 2016 Toyota 4 Runner, a car he has had since high school. After some detective work through teammates, Soto said he made sure that Baty got the “car of his dreams.”
Baty will be changing to No. 7 this season, in honor of José Reyes and Joe Mauer, two players he admired growing up.
“It’s amazing, just for him to be able to think to do something like that. I couldn’t be more grateful,” Baty said. “I’m just really excited that he’s on our team and I get to learn from him.”
This trade follows last year’s campaign by former Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly’s wife, Ashley, who offered Shohei Ohtani her husband’s No. 17 if he signed with the team. Once he did, Ohtani delivered a new Porsche to the Kellys.
