In the wake of baseball superstar Juan Soto signing the largest contract in professional sports history with the New York Mets—$765 million over 15 years—internet users are spreading false rumors about his departure from the New York Yankees.
A viral post, depicting what appears to be an excerpt from an article discussing Soto’s contract, claims that Soto was offended by his Yankee teammates’ purported support for President-elect Donald Trump. However, the viral excerpt was never actually published in any article, and quotes attributed to Scott Boras, Juan Soto’s agent, have been fabricated.
The excerpt alleges:
Soto’s agent, Scott Boras, also touched on how the Dominican star was irked by several players’ political views, particularly their support for Donald Trump. Before Game 3 of the World Series, Aaron Judge and Anthony Volpe walked into the clubhouse donning Trump gear, finding it offensive to Latino-Americans.
“[We] found several comments at his Madison Square Garden rally very offensive,” agent Scott Boras said. “To see his teammates condone that behavior certainly affected him.”
When Soto met with Mets’ superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor, he was much more comfortable with his views.
Fox News contributor Joe Concha later reshared the viral excerpt to imply that Soto is a “snowflake.” “Soto apparently was one of the few people actually offended by a comedian’s joke at a Trump rally, and was also taken aback Judge and Volpe wore Trump gear,” he tweeted. “Snowflakes usually don’t exist in baseball.”
Nick Adams, a right-wing internet influencer, also shared the excerpt with his nearly 600,000 followers on X. “Did I just become an Aaron Judge fan?” he said. “Juan Soto can get bent.”
Another X account tweeted the excerpt, while also falsely claiming that Soto is an illegal immigrant. “MAGA Volpe and MAGA Judge scared Soto away cause he’s an ILLEGAL ALIEN it seems!” The post has so far accumulated more than 140,000 views.
The viral excerpt was not taken from any published article, and the claims made appear to be completely false. Boras told the Dispatch Fact Check that the quotes attributed to him are fabricated. In fact, Boras said he has never spoken a word about political beliefs being a factor in Soto’s decision. “Fake news,” Boras told The Dispatch Fact Check when asked about the claims. “These statements are falsely created and I have never been asked or responded to subject matter of this nature.”
Neither Soto, Judge, nor Volpe have made any public statements mentioning the political beliefs of their fellow teammates. There is also no indication that Yankees players wore Trump merchandise prior to Game 3 of the World Series. According to MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, Soto did not meet with the Mets’ Lindor until after Soto agreed to his record-breaking contract. “Of course, Lindor told [Mets owner Steve] Cohen and [Mets General Manager David] Stearns that he would love to have Soto as a teammate,” DiComo wrote, “but that was the extent of the shortstop’s involvement.”
Claims that Soto is an “illegal alien” are similarly baseless. The New York Post’s Jon Heyman reported earlier this month that Soto is a Florida resident, at least for tax purposes of his new contract. Soto was born and raised in the Dominican Republic, but he has played professional baseball in the U.S. since at least 2016. The Washington Nationals first signed Soto in July 2015 for a $1.5 million signing bonus. While he was initially placed on a Dominican Republic-based minor league baseball team affiliated with the Nationals, he was promoted in May 2016 to the organization’s Florida-based minor league affiliate.
While Soto’s immigration status is not public information, most foreign-born athletes come to the U.S. under a P-1 visa. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, qualifications to become a P-1 visa recipient include being an “internationally recognized individual athlete,” a player on an “internationally recognized athletic team,” or play in a U.S.-based sports league that brings in north of $10 million in combined team revenue annually, as well as further qualifications for “amateur athletes and coaches.” Both Soto and the Mets are likely to be considered “internationally recognized,” and Major League Baseball’s revenue measured around $11.6 billion in 2023, per The Athletic.
Jack Bair, now chief legal officer and president of the San Francisco Giants, told Arizona State University’s sports media venture, Global Sport Matters, in 2018 that obtaining P-1 visas for major league baseball players is “fairly routine.” “The individual teams arrange for the visas of their players,” Bair explained. “And baseball has an immigration expert available to help. It’s fairly simple. Most players are brought over on P-1 visas and it’s fairly routine.”
The Dispatch Fact Check reached out to MLB, the MLB Players Association, and the New York Mets to confirm Soto’s legal status in the country.
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