NEW YORK (AFP) — Dominican slugger Juan Soto’s 15-year Major League Baseball (MLB) deal worth a record $765 million has turned the New York Mets from a punchline to a club with punching power.

Soto’s reported deal, the largest in North American professional sports history, has yet to be confirmed, reportedly because a final physical has not been taken.

But the free agent move by Soto, who played for the New York Yankees last season, has already excited Mets fans and soured supporters of their Bronx-based rivals.

A joke on the US television show Saturday Night Live had Soto considering the Mets only as a charity move to help the needy, but less than 24 hours later, Soto had signed a rich deal and the Mets were seen as championship contenders.

A bidding war for Soto came down to the Yankees, who reached the World Series for the first time since 2009 with Soto in the lineup, and Mets, who won their first playoff series since 2015 but lost to the eventual champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series.

In the end, Mets owners Steve and Alexandra Cohen outspent Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner and the 26-year-old outfielder Soto will shift from Yankee Stadium to Citi Field and the American League (AL) to the National League (NL).

The NL won’t be unfamiliar territory for Soto, who won a World Series crown in 2019 with the NL Washington Nationals, who traded him in 2022 to the NL San Diego Padres, who traded Soto to the Yankees in December 2023.

Mike Piazza, a former Mets catcher, welcomed Soto to his new club on social media.

“Wishing Juan Soto all the best playing for the Most Amazing fans!” Piazza posted on social media.

 “I’m sure his time in NYC will help him. Great Early Christmas present from @StevenACohen2 and Alex, Looking forward to an exciting season.”

NBA Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell, a long-time Mets fan whose father works for the club, posted a photo on social media of Soto smiling and making a peace sign shortly after reports of the deal became public.

Soto’s deal would eclipse the $700 million record MLB contract for 10 years that the Los Angeles Dodgers signed with Japanese star Shohei Ohtani last December.

The Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox were other clubs that had reportedly been in the bidding for the Dominican star.

Soto batted .288 last season for the Yankees with 41 home runs, 109 runs batted in and 129 walks.

Soto’s first chance to play against the Yankees will come when the Mets visit Yankee stadium on May 16 to open a three-game series.

The Yankees visit the Mets on 4 to 6 July, where fireworks are assured with the opener on the US Independence Day holiday.

Soto would become the first player to compete in the MLB All-Star Game four consecutive years for four different clubs if he makes it there with the Mets in 2025.