NEW YORK -- At this point, Juan Soto is the Mets’ offense.
That may be a bit of an exaggeration … but only a bit. Soto’s solo homer in the first inning Wednesday gave the Mets a lead they would never relinquish in a 4-2 win over the Reds at Citi Field. In going deep, he became the 12th different Met to hit at least eight homers over a 12-game span, joining the likes of Gary Carter, Mike Piazza and other franchise greats. Before Soto, no one had accomplished the feat since Neil Walker more than a decade ago.
Soto is, in short, on a bona fide heater. Over New York’s past eight games, he has accounted for nearly a third of its RBIs despite not playing in two of those contests. At a time when the Mets are struggling to find offense from anyone other than Soto, their best and most expensive hitter is at least holding up his end of the bargain.
Coming to the plate with the bases empty and two outs in the first inning, Soto launched an Andrew Abbott curveball a Statcast-projected 366 feet over the fence in right, giving him home runs in consecutive games since returning from illness on Tuesday. Six of his past eight hits have been homers, in fact, doubling his season total to 12. Only seven National League hitters have more, and all of them have played in at least nine more games than Soto, who missed two and a half weeks in April due to a right calf injury.
These types of hot streaks are not necessarily new for Soto, who has been one of the game’s most productive sluggers for the better part of a decade. But at a time when the Mets continue to search for answers at the plate, with eight runs in six games heading into Wednesday’s play, Soto’s production has stood in stark contrast to that of his teammates.
On Wednesday, the Mets did find some additional support from Eric Wagaman, who also homered, and Carson Benge, who had a pair of RBI hits to back a six-pitcher production. But it was Soto who gave them the lead, Soto who reached base three times (once on catcher interference), Soto who remained the clear engine of this offense.
On the season, Soto is batting .301/.392/.594 in 39 games. His .986 OPS would lead the NL if he had enough at-bats to qualify.