Brett Baty was kind enough to give up his jersey number when the New York Mets signed Juan Soto, and the newly signed slugger found a great way to make it worth his teammate’s while.
Soto has worn No. 22 throughout his entire MLB career. That number was already occupied by Baty at the time Soto signed a record 15-year, $765 million contract with the Mets in December.
Fortunately for Soto, Baty was not overly attached to No. 22. The third baseman agreed to let Soto have the number and switched to No. 7, which Baty says was a nod to former Mets shortstop Jose Reyes and legendary catcher Joe Mauer.
Baty’s good deed was rewarded in a big way. Soto surprised Baty on Thursday with a brand new Chevrolet Tahoe. The SUV, which is valued at nearly $100,000, had a bow on it and “THANKS FOR #22” written across the back windshield.
The Mets shared a video of Soto presenting the car to Baty, who had a huge smile on his face and said “no you didn’t.”
Soto said he did some asking around and learned that the Tahoe was Baty’s dream car.
Baty will make an estimated $800,000 this season, so a $92,000 car is a significant gift for him. You can understand why the 25-year-old was so excited.
No. 22 is the only jersey number that Soto has worn. It means so much to him that he even included it in contract negotiations with the Mets.
Of course, Baty was under no obligation to make the switch. That was a great gesture for Soto to make sure his teammate got something out of it.
