1 of 5 | Manager Carlos Mendoza (R) said the New York Mets will speak to star outfielder Juan Soto about hustling after his performance against the Boston Red Sox. File Photo by Corey Sipkin/UPI | License Photo
The New York Mets will speak to Juan Soto about hustling after the star outfielder was slow to get out of the batter’s box during a loss to the Boston Red Sox, manager Carlos Mendoza said.
Soto, who signed a 15-year, $765 million deal with the Mets in December, went 1 for 4 in the 3-1 setback Monday in Boston. He hit a ground out in his first at-bat and grounded into a double play in the third inning.
Soto returned to the plate in the sixth. He smashed a 93.8-mph fastball to left field. Soto briefly stood at home, watching the ball before it hit two-thirds of the way up the Green Monster, Fenway Park’s iconic outfield wall.
He ended up on first base, but could have potentially made it to second if he had sprinted out of the batter’s box. Soto stole second base during the next at-bat. He moved to third when fellow outfielder Brandon Nimmo grounded into a double play, but was eventually stranded on base.
Juan Soto singles off the Green Monster and then steals second base on the next pitch pic.twitter.com/BQoIQAkmlO— SNY (@SNYtv) May 20, 2025
“We will talk to him about it,” Mendoza said Monday, when asked about Soto’s jog out of the batter’s box. “Obviously, someone gets ahold of one and knows when he gets it, it’s Juan. He thought he had it. With the wind and all that, in this ballpark, with that wall right there, you’ve gotta get out of the box.
“Yeah, we’ll discuss that.”
Soto, who also appeared to be slow out of the box on a close play at first base in a loss Sunday to the New York Yankees, told reporters that he thought he was “hustling pretty hard” in Monday’s setback.
“I think I’ve been hustling pretty hard,” Soto said. “If you saw it [Monday], you could tell.”
Juan Soto was asked about not hustling out of the box last night vs. the Yankees and tonight vs. the Red Sox
"I think I've been hustling pretty hard. If you see it today, you could tell" pic.twitter.com/vOmQivgtZR— SNY (@SNYtv) May 20, 2025
Soto, who grounded out in the top of the eighth, is hitting .246 with eight home runs and 20 RBIs through 47 games this season. He hit .288 with a career-high 41 home runs and 109 RBIs over 157 appearances last year for the Yankees.
The Mets (29-19) will face the Red Sox (24-25) in the second game of the series at 6:45 p.m. EDT Tuesday at Fenway Park.
