The Mets’ season took another hit Saturday, and this one lands right at the center of everything they hoped to build around.
Juan Soto is going on the injured list with a left calf strain, the team announced after he exited Friday night’s 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. MLB insider Jon Heyman confirmed the move, writing, “Soto goes on the IL with a left calf strain, Mets announce,”
New York did not offer a clear timeline for his return. What is clear is that the Mets will be without their most dangerous bat as they move toward the Aug. 3 MLB trade deadline with a 43-61 record.
Soto had been working through discomfort in the calf for about a week. The Mets sat him out of Wednesday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers in hopes the issue would calm down, then brought him back Friday as the designated hitter. He walked in both plate appearances against the Dodgers, but the trouble never really went away.
He also seemed to labor while running on a double play in the third inning, and Jorge Polanco later pinch-hit for him in the sixth. After the game, interim manager Andy Green made it sound like the club already knew the situation was more than a minor annoyance.
“This has nagged him for a week,” Green said. “Anytime you get an image, you’re concerned.”
It is the latest setback in what has become an injury-heavy second season in New York for Soto. He missed roughly three weeks in April with a strain in his right calf, and he has also dealt with back soreness and cramping in his left calf.
Even with the physical issues, Soto has still been the Mets’ most reliable source of offense. Through 84 games, the 27-year-old is hitting .283 with 21 home runs, 52 RBIs and a .947 OPS. He leads the team in batting average, home runs, RBIs and on-base percentage.
That production matters even more because the rest of the lineup has struggled badly. Entering Saturday, the Mets ranked 27th in MLB with 421 runs scored.
They were 26th in batting average, 28th in on-base percentage and 25th in slugging percentage. A team with major financial commitments has slid to the bottom of the National League East, 18.5 games behind the first-place Atlanta Braves and 9.5 games out of third place.
Friday’s loss pushed New York 18 games under .500 and only strengthened the sense that president of baseball operations David Stearns will be a seller at the deadline. Several veterans, including pitcher Clay Holmes, have already come up as trade possibilities.
Soto’s injury does not change the long-term picture. He remains the face of the franchise after signing a record 15-year, $765 million contract before the 2025 season. But it does make the short-term outlook even bleaker for a club already headed in the wrong direction.
The Mets have now lost two straight and opened the weekend series against the Dodgers with just four hits. Luis Robert Jr. and Francisco Alvarez supplied the only runs with solo home runs.
Without Soto, Green is expected to lean more heavily on Robert, Carson Benge, Tyrone Taylor and A.J. Ewing in the outfield.
The fact that this is now a problem in both calves only adds to the caution. Soto’s first calf strain came in early April while he was running the bases. The Mets initially hoped to avoid an IL stint then, but imaging showed enough damage to keep him out for several weeks.
This time, the issue built up gradually rather than on one single play. New York tried to manage it with a day off, then put him back in the lineup as a DH, but that was not enough to keep him off the IL. With the season effectively gone, there is little reason to push him back before the calf is fully healed.
The Mets entered 2026 expecting Soto to anchor a contender. Instead, they are staring at a sell-off at the deadline while their biggest star heads back to the injured list.
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