Juan Soto, a $765 million player for the New York Mets, is still having difficulties.
In a first half that has been a huge letdown in comparison to expectations for his debut season in Queens, Soto has gone hitless in his past 14 at-bats and now has a batting average (.224) that is 57 points below his career average. And as the issues grow, Mets head of baseball operations David Stearns feels that Soto is pushing.
“I honestly don’t have like a ‘this is the issue he needs to fix to get better’,” Stearns said when asked what he thought the problem was. “He’s taking solid at-bats, in my opinion. Having good control over the striking zone. He’s hitting the ball a bit more frequently than he used to. He is conscious of that fact.
“But telling yourself, ‘Hey, I need to hit the ball in the air more,’ doesn’t instantly convert to hitting the ball in the air more. accomplish I believe he’s trying to accomplish a little bit too much right now? Yeah, I think he’s probably trying to do a little bit too much right now. And for a player who is interested in getting better, that comes naturally.
Stearns’s remarks partially mirror those of Scott Boras, Soto’s agent, who told Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated that he thinks Soto is struggling to adjust to wearing “the crown” as the highest-paid player in baseball. Although there are several causes for Soto’s lackluster start to 2025, Mets management has come together to believe that this will also pass.
Carlos Mendoza, the manager of the Mets, has maintained that Soto is passing the “eye test” in spite of the lack of results at the dish, and Stearns didn’t appear worried about him on Friday. Regarding his star slugger’s difficulties, even Mets owner Steve Cohen, who opened his wallet to sign Soto to the largest contract in North American sports history, advocated for patience.
The Mets (34-22) are in second place in the National League East despite Soto’s sluggish start.
