Yankees fans furious with Jeff Passan's outrageous Mets praise after Juan Soto deal

We'll be the first ones to tell you that the New York Yankees no longer hold the power they once did. They might be the most successful franchise in the history of the sport, but they've fallen off tremendously over the last 25 years and have been more of an embarrassment than a success.

But give us an absolute BREAK with this. It was already enough that ESPN's Jeff Passan wrote the most flowery column of any MLB team when he praised the New York Mets following their postseason exit, but now he's taken it too far after they signed Juan Soto.

Yes, there are notable talking points here. The Mets stole a free agent from the Yankees by bidding more, which is the first time that's ever happened. The Yankees got worse and are left scrambling as a result of losing the highest-stakes bidding war of all time. Nobody will deny the ripple effects this will have.

However, we're certainly not jumping to outlandish conclusions. Passan dubbed the Mets the "new kings of New York" after they gave Soto a $765 million contract (that could reach $805 million). Funny how this works, right? The Yankees spend and they are viewed as a hatable juggernaut that "buys championships." The Dodgers spend and defer money and they are evil cheaters. The Mets drop the largest contract offer of all time to a generational hitter who can't play defense and all of a sudden they run a city they only had a handle on for a few years in the 80s and 90s.

"After decades of carrying themselves like a midmarket team, the Mets grew into the primordial version of what they could be: a frightening machine, replete with talented people and an owner willing to go where others wouldn't," Passan wrote.

Again, we can't deny the Mets just made one of the most impactful moves of all time. But Cohen has only exercised his financial influence meaningfully a handful of times: twice with Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, both of which were failed deals, and now with Soto, who joins an incomplete roster in every sense of the word.

Jeff Passan's ridiculous Mets praise has Yankees fans rolling their eyes after Juan Soto deal

Passan has a history of this, though. He clowns on the Yankees every chance he gets for whatever reason. Before Opening Day this year, he said Yankees fans "wish" they were the Orioles, who regressed in 2024 and then once again got owned in the playoffs. Yup, we wish nothing more than to be a team that tanks and rebuilds for seven years with top draft picks.

Now, apparently, the Yankees probably wish they were the Mets, who kept bidding until they could no longer bid and objectively overpaid for a talent they were desperate to acquire due to their continued lack of relevancy.

Never mind the fact the Mets have a universally-ranked middling farm system. Never mind the fact they lost Luis Severino and are watching Pete Alonso, Sean Manaea, Jose Iglesias, Harrison Bader, Jose Quintana and others hit free agency. They have no pitching staff! They have no depth. But all of a sudden they have "the bones" of a World Series contender and Soto actually believed the Mets have a brighter future than the Yankees?

The Yankees' farm system might not be better, but they just made the World Series and can replace Soto in pieces with the amount of money they have left to spend. When all is said and done, they might actually have a far better future than the Mets, who only have two prospects in MLB's Top 100 (and they're both outfielders!).

Are we doubting the Mets? Absolutely not. Cohen could still go nuclear and David Stearns could wheel and deal on the trade market. But to anoint them the next best thing when they have an incomplete roster, almost no championship pedigree, and just burst onto the scene with a clear act of desperation by hurling the most amount of money possible at Scott Boras?

Again, give us a break.