Sports
Mets went wild for Juan Soto: Why a measured approach might come next
After signing Juan Soto to the richest contract in sports history, people familiar with the New York Mets’ thinking about filling roster holes said the club plans to act “aggressively yet smart.”
Such phrasing suggests the Mets will take their shots with some of the talent available on the market but may want to avoid being tied to another long contract. So it would seem their preference, even in some cases with large annual average values, would be to go short-term.
That might mean the Mets prefer homegrown star Pete Alonso to return on a shorter deal rather than conceding entirely if Alonso’s desired figures run on the long end. That might mean a reluctance to go five years, possibly even four years, for Sean Manaea, a pitcher they’d like to re-sign. And it might mean wanting Walker Buehler, someone who’d fit in well with them, for something like a one-year deal with an option rather than a straight multiyear pact.
The Mets inked Soto last week at 15 years and $765 million, underscoring in big bold lettering owner Steve Cohen’s willingness to spend for what he wants.
What Cohen desires most, though, is a perennial winner, not a team prone to big ups and downs.
So while a team’s winter is always difficult to predict because opportunities sometimes arise unexpectedly, it wouldn’t be surprising if the rest of the Mets’ offseason reflected a more measured approach.
Steve Cohen (left) made a splash by paying up for Juan Soto, but expect upcoming moves by David Stearns to be more understated. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
In Soto, the Mets saw a generational player and viewed splurging on him as a rare opportunity. He’s 26 years old and one of the game’s most prolific hitters. They’ll continue looking for ways to supplement a roster that includes star Francisco Lindor, veteran Brandon Nimmo and breakout player Mark Vientos. But just because they committed so much to Soto, doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll fill other holes by any means necessary.
The Mets splurged multiple times a few years ago with mixed results at best. One year, they experienced success. The next year, they needed to pivot. That is why Cohen hired David Stearns as president of baseball operations, to run things with an emphasis on viability.
Sensible trade options exist for the Mets, particularly if they don’t match with free agents such as Manaea, Buehler, Nick Pivetta or someone similar. There is no guarantee the San Diego Padres’ Dylan Cease or the Houston Astros’ Framber Valdez will be traded, but both pitchers seem to work under the Mets’ plan. They’re both set to be free agents after the season. Thus, they both would be motivated to have big seasons. In either, the Mets could see an opportunity.
Other opportunities to upgrade the pitching staff may involve starters under club control. Garrett Crochet, 25, stood out as an example. The Mets engaged with the White Sox about Crochet before Chicago dealt him to the Red Sox, which indicated a willingness to part with high-end talent from the farm system. But talks between the Mets and White Sox went only so far because the Mets didn’t want to part with what the White Sox wanted and ultimately received (multiple top prospects). The process served as a data point in learning how Stearns operates with the Mets.
After reaching the NLCS in his second year leading the Mets, Stearns doled out his three largest contracts with the club: Soto, obviously, plus Frankie Montas (two years, $34 million) and Clay Holmes (three years, $38 million). In the case of Holmes, Stearns used money to beat out other teams interested in converting the All-Star reliever into a starter. Still, that’s not exactly akin to going an extra year on someone like Alex Bregman. It’s more taking a shot on someone based on processes and acting with conviction within guided parameters. Veteran agents often compliment Stearns for his ability to collect information, read the market and then make a decision. He is not easily susceptible to being on the wrong end of a bad contract.
While the Soto deal highlights Cohen’s capabilities, what comes next figures to feature Stearns and his front office’s track record.
(Top photo of Juan Soto and David Stearns: David Dee Delgado / Getty Images)
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With 48 teams competing and a grueling path through the knockout stage, reaching the semifinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be an accomplishment in itself.
Only four nations will survive the tournament’s first 100 matches and earn a spot in the final four, putting themselves within two victories of lifting the most coveted trophy in sports.
Let’s take a look at the latest odds to reach the semifinals at FanDuel Sportsbook as of June 26.
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To Reach Semifinals
Argentina: +100 (bet $10 to win $20 total)
France: +110 (bet $10 to win $21 total)
Spain: +120 (bet $10 to win $22 total)
England: +165 (bet $10 to win $26.50 total)
Portugal: +210 (bet $10 to win $31 total)
Brazil: +270 (bet $10 to win $37 total)
Netherlands: +300 (bet $10 to win $40 total)
Germany: +330 (bet $10 to win $43 total)
USA: +380 (bet $10 to win $48 total)
Norway: +550 (bet $10 to win $65 total)
Colombia: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)
Belgium: +700 (bet $10 to win $80 total)
Morocco: +750 (bet $10 to win $85 total)
Switzerland: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total)
Mexico: +850 (bet $10 to win $95 total)
Japan: +1200 (bet $10 to win $130 total)
Croatia: +1300 (bet $10 to win $140 total)
Ecuador: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)
Canada: +1700 (bet $10 to win $180 total)
Austria: +1900 (bet $10 to win $200 total)
Here’s what to know about this oddsboard:
The Top 10: Argentina, France, Spain, England, Portugal, Brazil, the Netherlands and Germany — all considered powerhouse countries — stand at the top of the board, with each nation listed at +330 or better to reach the semifinals. But right after that group? The USA and Norway. The Americans have never made it to the semifinals of the World Cup, and this is Norway’s first appearance in the tournament since 1998.
SAN DIEGO — Hodad’s is a third-generation small business, a San Diego treasure that makes a damn good burger. I dropped by one of their two restaurants last winter, but I didn’t see what I wanted on the menu.
The burger I get at Petco Park, I explained to the server. She knew exactly what I meant.
“The F— the Dodgers burger,” she said, with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.
In San Diego, it had been an impish inside joke for years. If you didn’t know what FTD meant on the menu at the Hodad’s stands at Petco Park, the burger — with cheese, onion rings, pickles, mayonnaise and barbecue sauce — still was a good time.
When the Dodgers played here last month, a fan posted a picture of the menu board and explained what FTD stood for. The next day, Jomboy Media did the same, in a post with 1.6 million views.
“When I first saw that,” Hodad’s co-owner Shane Hardin told me, “I thought, ‘Oh, sweet, Jomboy, cool. We’ll get a little bump.’ ”
Then Hardin got a call from Delaware North, the company that handles the San Diego Padres’ concessions. People are talking, Hardin was told.
“And I’m like, ‘Cool, great, let ‘em talk, there’s no profanity anywhere,’ ” Hardin said.
The Padres and Delaware North did not see it that way. “FTD” was stripped from the menu boards at the four Hodad’s stands, initially replaced by the lame quartet of “Foul to Dinger,” “For the Division,” “For the Dugout” and “For the Diegans” and currently replaced by the strained quartet of “For the Dads,” “For the Dub,” “Faithful til Death” and (gulp) “Flyball to Deep.”
Another new name for the FTD burger at Petco Park.
(Bill Shaikin / Los Angeles Times)
The Padres declined comment for this column.
Hardin is more amused than annoyed, particularly given the origin of the FTD Burger. It’s been on Hodad’s Petco Park menu since …
“Was it the 2022 playoffs that the Padres beat the Dodgers?” he asked.
This is how a San Diegan tells time, but yes.
“The Padres hit us up and said, ‘We want a special menu item for the playoffs,’” Hardin said. “We go, ‘OK, without us ever saying what it meant, can we call it the FTD Burger?’ They said, ‘Oh, yeah, ha ha, that’s funny, go for it.’ And so we did.”
The burger has been sold at Petco Park ever since, with the same recipe, despite the online conspiracy theory that its three onion rings represented the Dodgers’ three World Series championship rings this decade.
“Dude, I don’t keep track of what the Dodgers have,” Hardin said. “I really don’t care.”
It is in that spirit that I am stunned the Padres made the change.
The San Diego Padres often sell “Beat LA” T-shirts in their team store.
(Bill Shaikin / Los Angeles Times)
The Padres, the team that sells “Beat L.A.” shirts in the team store. The Padres, the team that put up a meme of Clayton Kershaw crying on the video board. The Padres, the team that begged its fans not to sell their tickets to fans of “a team from a little ways up north” and also refused to sell tickets to that 2022 playoff series to anyone in Los Angeles County.
The Padres deserve a ton of credit for breathing life into what now is a feisty rivalry with the Dodgers. It is odd that, all of a sudden, they’re worried about decorum.
“I was under the impression that FTD was just kind of a fun ‘if you know, you know’ sort of thing,” Hardin said. “People will hold up signs saying ‘FTD’ and they’ll get on the JumboTron.
“At the end of the day, Hodad’s is a little rough around the edges. But we’re still a family place.”
Hardin isn’t upset with the Padres. It’s their ballpark, after all, and he enjoys being part of it.
“I love being there,” he said. “The relationship is great, honestly.”
And he had one other thing to say about the demise of the FTD label: “That first homestand after that news broke, we sold 50% more of that burger each game. I’ll take that.”
The Padres might want to reconsider. In baseball, curses are no joking matter, and the Curse of the FTD Burger might now have befallen the team.
When the Dodgers left Petco Park five weeks ago, the Padres were 1½ games behind them. Before the Padres’ next game, the Jomboy post went viral and the “FTD” name vanished.
As the Dodgers return here Friday, the Padres are nine games behind the Dodgers.
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Team USA’s final group stage match in the 2026 FIFA World Cup may not have had any implications for either team, but patriotism was in full force for the home country as Second Lady Usha Vance was among the many prominent figures at Los Angeles Stadium on Thursday night.
As the U.S. national anthem rang across the stadium, with players and fans singing in unison, the FOX Sports broadcast showed Vance in a suite with a huge smile on her face as “The Star-Spangled Banner” ended.
Vance was present at the match just two days after FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced that President Donald Trump would present the World Cup trophy to the winning team at the final in New Jersey on July 19.
U.S. Second Lady Usha Vance attends the 2026 World Cup Group D match between Turkey and the United States at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood on June 25, 2026. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
Vance was just the beginning of the stars that showed out in Inglewood, as Paris Hilton was seen presenting the match ball before kick-off. Then, cameras started to pick up the many high-profile faces throughout the crowd.
Among them were Edward Norton and Brad Pitt, a pair that many movie lovers know from their hit classic “Fight Club.” Some social media users even hoped that the discussion they were seen having was about a sequel.
TOM CRUISE, DAVID BECKHAM, KATY PERRY AND MORE CELEBRITIES SPOTTED AT 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP MATCHES
Also, movie star Ashton Kutcher was seen speaking with Los Angeles Rams standout wide receiver Puka Nacua, who knows the confines of SoFi Stadium (what it is called outside of FIFA play) very well.
Then, Colin Farrell, though Irish born, was rocking a replica Team USA jersey alongside his son in the stands to support the Stars and Stripes. Leonardo DiCaprio, Scottie Pippen and more were also seen in the seats.
U.S. Second Lady Usha Vance sings the anthem during the 2026 World Cup Group D match between Turkey and the U.S. at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood on June 25, 2026. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
There has been a tremendous outpouring of support for the USMNT from everywhere, celebrity or not, throughout this tournament. The 4-2 win over Paraguay at the same Los Angeles stadium caused a frenzy in the stands, as the U.S. made a statement to begin the tournament on home soil for the first time since 1999.
USA WORLD CUP TEAM CLINCHES SPOT IN KNOCKOUT STAGE AFTER ANOTHER HISTORIC PERFORMANCE VS AUSTRALIA
Then, it was on to Seattle, where a 2-0 victory over Australia not only led to a spot in the knockout round, but led to a bellowing of the John Denver classic, “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” from everyone in the stands. The USMNT saluted their fans after yet another successful match.
It was a much different look for the USMNT entering Thursday night’s matchup against Türkiye, with nine changes to the starting XI after the team had already secured its place in the knockout stage. The Americans will face Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Round of 32 on July 1.
Paris Hilton is seen with children before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D match between Türkiye and USA at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., on June 25, 2026. (Sarah Stier/FIFA)
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No matter who’s on the pitch, some of the biggest names in the country are showing support for the team that has inspired tremendous national pride to kick off this tournament.
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