The New York baseball world was set abuzz once again after Juan Soto (the current Mets star and former Yankee) left a simple, one-word comment on Aaron Judge’s (the main character in the post) recent Instagram celebration, sparking a mix of nostalgia, frustration, and fan chaos.
The comment came after Judge was awarded his second consecutive American League Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award (Source 1.2).
The Post and The Comment
- The Post: On Monday, November 17, 2025, Judge took to Instagram to celebrate his 2025 MVP season. The post reportedly included warm family photos with his wife, Samantha, and baby Nora, along with a message thanking fans for their support and pledging to work toward a World Series win (Source 3.2).
- The Comment: Among the hundreds of thousands of likes and thousands of comments, Juan Soto’s single-word reply stood out: “LEGEND.”
Why The Comment Caused Chaos
Soto’s brief compliment, while seemingly innocent, immediately “riled up” Yankees fans and stoked the flames of the lingering rivalry between the New York baseball clubs (Source 1.2). The reaction stems from the fact that Soto opted to sign a record-breaking contract with the crosstown rival New York Mets after his wildly successful 2024 season with the Yankees, despite forming one of baseball’s most dominant duos with Judge.
The fan reactions, seen across social media, were largely split into three emotional camps (Source 1.2):
- Nostalgia/Regret: Fans lamented the loss of the “Bash Brothers” pairing. Comments included: “He misses the Yankees so much 😂” and “I miss the chosen Juan idc what anyone says.”
- Rivalry/Disdain: Mets fans and some critical Yankees fans interpreted the comment as a dig at the Mets: “Good god he hates the mets lmao.”
- The “What If”: Many fans couldn’t help but dream of what could have been: “Imagine if the Yanks beat LA in 2024, this man would still be a Yankee regardless of the money.”
The exchange confirms that despite the massive contract and the Mets affiliation, the personal and professional admiration between the two former teammates, who combined for 99 home runs and 253 RBIs in 2024, remains strong (Source 1.2).
Soto’s former and current teams are preparing for the 2026 season. Would you like the latest news on the Yankees’ pursuit of Cody Bellinger to replace the production lost by Soto’s departure?
