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Over the last couple of offseasons, the New York Mets haven’t been shy about signing former New York Yankees players. From Juan Soto to Luke Weaver to Devin Williams, these are some of the names that moved from the Bronx to Queens.
After making the move from the Yankees to the Mets, Soto, who finished the 2025 season batting .263 with 152 hits, 43 home runs, 105 RBIs, and 120 runs scored across 160 games, per StatMuse. Last season’s production earned another Silver Slugger award, the sixth of his career.
Nonetheless, it’s not just the players with Yankees ties. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza worked his way through the Yankees’ coaching ranks before taking over the managerial job in Queens.
During a Feb. 17 appearance on WFAN, Mendoza was asked about the Mets grabbing players from their cross-town rival and whether there’s any benefit.
“It definitely helps [to have experience playing for the Yankees], but it’s not something that we’re looking for, or we’re fishing,” Mendoza said. “… If it makes sense and it fits our roster, then it’s just, I don’t know, it’s weird, but once you get them on board, it probably helps a little bit.
“At the end of the day, you’ve got to go out and play baseball. When we’re making decisions, we’re not looking for players that have previous experience in New York. We’re looking for baseball players that are going to help us win baseball games here and that we will continue to.”
Mets’ Juan Soto Doesn’t Hold Back on Bo Bichette
As for Soto, he will have added protection in the Mets lineup from a player familiar with playing against the Yankees: Bo Bichette. With Bichette now in the mix with the Mets at least for this season, Soto didn’t hold back his thoughts on his new teammate, who also brings World Series experience to the team.
“We’re going to have Bo,” Soto said about having Bichette in the Mets lineup for added protection (h/t SNY). “Bo, I trust him. He’s a great hitter. Definitely, he can hit homers, and he can hit for average. So I think he’s a great protection.”
Moreover, Soto believes that this 2026 team is better than last season, as this offseason saw the departures of key players like Pete Alonso, Edwin Diaz, and Brandon Nimmo.
“I feel the same way as last year,” Soto added (h/t SNY). “We have a great team this year. We had a great team last year. This year, I feel like we have an even better team. I played with those guys last year. It’s a new year. We forget about what happened last year. Whatever happens, we focus on this year.”
Juan Soto Will Be Adapting to a New Position
As Soto goes into Year 2 in Queens, he will also have a new position. The Mets are moving their star outfielder from right to left field. Amid this decision from the Mets, former MLB general manager Jim Duquette says the team made the right move by moving Soto to left field.
“If you look at all the metrics and the eyeball test and all that, last year he was a minus-12 Outs Above Average in right field,” Duquette said during the Feb. 10 edition of “Baseball Night In New York.”
“The last time he played left field, it was, I think, a minus-7 in left. It wasn’t great. But defensively, there are fewer balls hit to left field. There are fewer right-handed hitters in the league; that’s No. 1. No. 2, his arm plays better in left field than it does in right field, and I think there will be an upgrade defensively in left field.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports writer for Heavy.com, covering the NFL, MLB, and college football. He has previously covered the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has freelanced for PSG Talk, covering Paris Saint-Germain. He also worked as an editor at Athlon Sports, focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
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