Left fielder Juan Soto has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right calf strain, the New York Mets announced on Monday. The Mets noted that “a typical return to play for this type of injury is approximately 2-3 weeks.” The move is retroactive to April 4 and Ronny Mauricio has been recalled from the minors as a corresponding move. Assuming there are no setbacks, it’s possible Soto can come back in a few weeks and not need a minor-league rehab assignment.
In the meantime, the Mets will be without their most talented bat. Through just eight games, Soto is hitting .355/.412/.516 (164 OPS+) with two doubles, a homer, five RBI and three runs scored. You can’t really replace a player of the caliber of Soto, but the Mets have several players who are capable of hitting better and, if that happens, such things can help mitigate the loss.
Specifically, Bo Bichette (.200/.229/.244), Francisco Lindor (.135/.333/.243) and Jorge Polanco (.188/.297/.281) can do more.
Not that the Mets are disappointments thus far or anything. They are 6-4 and averaging 4.9 runs per game, good for a 106 team OPS+. The re-emergence of Mark Vientos has been huge, Luis Robert Jr. has been great, Francisco Alvarez has hit for great power and Marcus Semien has looked better in the last several days.
With Soto out, Jared Young can continue to hold down left field — as he did the last two games — and he’s done well so far, hitting .385./467/.538 in 15 plate appearances.
The Mets just finished a road trip with three straight wins and now have a six-game homestand against the Diamondbacks and Athletics. It does appear that Soto will miss the difficult road trip that happens afterward (at Dodgers, at Cubs), but perhaps he returns shortly thereafter during a very workable stretch in which the Mets play the Twins, Rockies, Nationals, Angels and Rockies.
President of baseball operations David Stearns massively overhauled the roster in the offseason after a disappointing 2025 campaign and the Mets are expected (and hoping) to return to contention in the tough NL East.
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