NEW YORK — Typically, an end-of-May press conference with David Stearns would revolve around the team’s performance up to this point. The Mets president of baseball operations has said that he views Memorial Day as a mark on the baseball calendar that paints a sample size of how the team is performing.
But the Mets, who spent 35 days in first place and have the sixth-best record in Major League Baseball, are doing alright. It’s their $765 million slugger that’s sparking interest and concern.
Juan Soto just recorded the worst 50-game start to a season in his career. He entered Friday night hitless in his last 16 at-bats. He has a .224 batting average and .745 OPS, both of which are well below his career averages of .281 and .941, respectively. As May comes to a close, Soto has just eight home runs and has grounded into 10 double plays. For perspective, Soto had 15 home runs at this point last year, and he grounded into 10 double plays in his entire season with the Yankees.
“This hasn’t been a month where he’s performed up to the Juan Soto standard that everyone’s become accustomed to, and that’s a very, very high standard,” Stearns said in a press conference on Friday at Citi Field. “But players go through ups and downs, even the best of players go through ups and downs, and it’s our job to continue to help him get through that.”
Most astonishingly, Soto this year is batting .130 with runners in scoring position. Putting up goose eggs in high-leverage situations is unlike him. In his career, he boasts a .286 batting average with runners in scoring position.
“Do I think he’s trying to do a little bit too much right now? Yeah. I think he’s probably trying to do a little bit too much right now,” Stearns said. “And that is natural for a player who cares about improving.”
How difficult is it to break out of that cycle of pressing at the plate?
“I don’t know,” Stearns said. “I mean, I’ve clearly never sat in that seat. None of us has, and it’s a very unique position that he’s in. … Maybe it’ll take a bloop, or a couple of bloops. Or maybe it takes connecting on one or two, to exhale a little bit. But I would imagine it is difficult when the results don’t come.”
Juan Soto entered Friday night hitless in his last 16 at-bats.
Soto is coming off a career year in the Bronx, where he hit 41 home runs, scored a league-high 128 runs, and recorded a .288 batting average to go with a .989 OPS. After helping the Yankees get to the World Series, he went through a noisy free agency that commanded the full attention of the league, before winding up in a bidding war between the Bronx and Queens. In December, his free agency finally culminated in a seismic decision to sign with the Mets. Soto’s 15-year, $765 million deal is the largest contract in professional sports history.
Sure, baseball pundits expected Soto, a generational hitter, to sign a record-breaking deal. But the contract he ended up commanding was a shock to every corner of the industry. Fairly or not, for the rest of his Mets career, Soto’s performance will be judged in the context of that contract. The bright lights won’t dim even when the Mets (34-22) are playing well right now, one-third of the way through the regular season.
Stearns maintained that Soto, while frustrated with his results, is too talented to allow these struggles to persist. He’s confident the slugger will turn his season around soon.
“He’s still helping us win games, and I’m aware that the OPS isn’t where he would want it,” Stearns said. “It’s not where we would want it. It’s not where our fans would want it. I get that. But I can’t say it’s not for lack of work behind the scenes. He’s working, he’s trying. He certainly wants results at a higher level than what we’ve seen so far. I’m pretty confident we’re going to get those.
“But, I also understand it is natural when a player signs a big contract — and this was a really big contract — because the results aren’t immediate, there are going to be questions, and there are going to be reactions. And I certainly get that. And I think Juan does too.”
Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.
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