2:36PM: “One initial estimate” on Soto’s recovery time is 4-6 weeks, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
2:16PM: The Mets announced that slugger Juan Soto has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a left calf strain. Infielder Eric Wagaman was called up from Triple-A to take Soto’s spot on the active roster.
Soto previously missed a little under three weeks in April due to a right calf strain, and now his other calf has become an issue. The injury has lingered since the start of the second half, as per MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, and the Mets have mostly used Soto as a DH this week as a way to give him some partial rest while keeping him in the lineup. Things came to a head last night, however, as Soto left Friday’s 4-2 loss to the Dodgers in the sixth inning due to continued calf soreness.
A scheduled MRI seems to have revealed a strain, and more details should emerge later today about the severity. Ideally Soto can again return to action after a couple of weeks of rest, but calf strains tend to have a wide variance of potential outcomes. A more serious type of strain could even put the remainder of Soto’s season in jeopardy, and the fact that the Mets are already out of the playoff race means that the club might just shut Soto down if he isn’t ready to return by at least mid-September.
While Soto’s record contract tends to make him a lightning rod of controversy for an underachieving Mets team, Soto has been one of the Amazins’ few bright spots. Even while battling discomfort in both calves, Soto is hitting .283/.408/.539 with 21 homers over 359 plate appearances, and he leads the Nationals League in both OBP and OPS.
Soto’s left calf problem emerged around the same time that Luis Robert Jr. was activated from the 60-day IL, so with Soto primarily at DH, the Mets have been using Robert back in center field and Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing in the corners. Jorge Polanco or any number of Mets regulars could be cycled through the DH spot to get extra at-bats with Soto out, and it is likely larger roster shuffles will come once the Mets move some players at the trade deadline.
