Juan Soto

Soto Shuffle — the most disciplined plate approach in baseball and the sport's most valuable young position player.

Juan José Soto Pacheco was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in 2000. The Washington Nationals signed him at 16. He made his MLB debut at 19 in 2018 — becoming the third-youngest Nationals player ever. He helped Washington win the 2019 World Series — his first title — hitting .288 with 10 RBI across the postseason. His plate discipline — walk rate consistently above 15%, on-base percentage above .400 in multiple seasons — is historically unusual for a player under 25. His batting stance and practice of stepping out and shuffling his feet before swings — the Soto Shuffle — has become one of baseball's most recognisable individual mannerisms. He was traded to the San Diego Padres in 2022 in one of the most significant trades in recent MLB history, after declining a $440 million contract extension. He was then traded to the New York Yankees in 2023. He signed a 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets in December 2024 — the largest contract in professional sports history. He is 24 years old. His combination of elite hitting tools and exceptional patience at the plate make him the most valuable young position player in baseball.

Patient power hitter with elite plate discipline and opposite-field power

Youngest player to homer in World Series since Mickey Mantle

• World Series (2019)
• All-Star 4x
• Silver Slugger 3x
• NL Batting Title (2020)