Soto has been participating in baseball activities, including batting practice in an indoor cage, since days after straining his calf muscle April 3 in San Francisco. But he had not begun a running progression until Tuesday. That was a crucial step for Soto, who can’t be activated until he’s back to full speed.
A day later, Soto ran again and took live batting practice against Minor League pitchers brought to Citi Field from Brooklyn for that purpose.
“He came out well,” manager Carlos Mendoza said.
In the coming days, Soto must increase the intensity of his running program, while incorporating elements such as side-to-side shuffling and starting/stopping. Once he checks those boxes, Soto should be ready for activation. While that won’t occur this weekend in Chicago, the Mets are targeting their next homestand, which runs from April 21-30.
“That’s the goal,” Mendoza said.
A return next week would jibe with team officials’ original timetable of 2-3 weeks for a return to play for Soto, who will hit the three-week mark on April 24.
The team could use his help. Without Soto, the Mets have scored one or zero runs in five of their last six games. Soto had been one of the team’s most productive hitters prior to his injury, slashing .355/.412/.516 with one homer and two doubles in eight games.