Mets’ Marte Appeared to Be Recruiting Juan Soto at Home Run Derby

The New York outfielder seemed to some fans to pay more attention to the Nationals player than his own teammate, Pete Alonso.

During Monday night’s Home Run Derby, fans noticed how Mets outfielder Starling Marte acted as a major hype man for the eventual 2022 champion, Nationals outfielder Juan Soto.

It even seemed to some fans that Marte paid more attention to Soto than he did his own Mets teammate Pete Alonso, who didn’t advance to the finals.

Many saw Marte’s actions as a way of “recruiting” Soto, who reportedly just turned down a 15-year, $440 million contract extension with Washington on Saturday. This makes him available for a trade as the Nationals will reportedly listen to offers for the superstar outfielder. It is unclear how seriously the team would consider trading him to an NL East rival like New York.

The two are also both from the Dominican Republic, so there is a home country connection for them as well.

Twitter users noticed the interactions between the two players, and poked fun at Marte’s “recruitment.”

Starling Marte working OVERTIME to get Juan Soto on the Mets 😂 pic.twitter.com/I0kYKNisKb

— FanDuel (@FanDuel) July 19, 2022

Starling Marte continues to recruit— I mean coach Juan Soto here.

— Joe Pantorno (@JoePantorno) July 19, 2022

Starling Marte has been like Juan Soto's BFF during the Derby. Sort of a cheerleader-coach between rounds. #Mets

— David Lennon (@DPLennon) July 19, 2022

Boy does Starling Marte love Juan Soto

— Evan Roberts (@EvanRobertsWFAN) July 19, 2022

Juan Soto said in Spanish he has known Starling Marte, who was his main supporter among players tonight, since well before he got to the majors. He and Marte both work with Jorge Mejia, so they’ve spent a lot of time together

— Maria Torres (@maria_torres3) July 19, 2022

Starling Marte is all over Juan Soto as if they were, *ahem*, teammates #LGM

— Dan Graca (@DanGraca) July 19, 2022

After the game, Marte spoke to The Athletic and laughed when asked if he said or did anything to try to sway him to come to the Mets. He said he didn’t do anything, but is aware of the rumors.

The Nationals still have a couple weeks to figure out Soto’s future for the rest of the 2022 season as MLB’s trade deadline is Tuesday, Aug. 2 at 6 p.m. ET.

• Inside The Mets: New York Mets’ Pete Alonso on Shohei Ohtani: ‘He’d be More Than Welcome in Queens’ 

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