CNN
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Juan Soto’s first at-bat for the New York Mets gave some indication as to why they signed him to reportedly one of the biggest contract in American sports history.
The 26-year-old stepped up to the plate on Saturday and promptly launched a 426-foot homer over the left-center-field fence during the Mets’ 6-2 win over the Houston Astros in their Spring Training game.
Even though it was just part of spring practice, the crowd went wild, standing to applaud their new star.
“Everybody knows who you are,” Soto told reporters afterward. “But they’ve got to see it with their eyes.
“If you look at my numbers, I always start low so the past couple of years I’ve been trying to get going early and be ready in Spring Training right away.”
Soto signed for the Mets in December on a historic 15-year and $765 million deal, according to multiple reports. Last season, he had one of the best campaigns of his seven-year career, finishing with 41 home runs, 109 runs batted in and a .288 batting average while leading the Pinstripes to their first World Series appearance since 2009.
His homer in the bottom of the first inning on Saturday put the Mets ahead, and they led for the whole game. Soto drove in another run in the second which extended the Mets’ lead to 3-0.
Though the Astros got themselves on the scoreboard in the top of the fourth inning, they were never able to challenge the Mets, in part due to starting pitcher Clay Holmes who threw three perfect innings on his franchise debut.
Such has been the excitement around Soto appearing for the Mets that there were 7,394 spectators at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie, Florida, the second-largest crowd at the stadium for a spring game, according to the MLB.
CNN’s Jacob Lev contributed reporting.
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