The Juan Soto reality every NY Mets fan needs to accept to get through his tenure

The largest contract in MLB history belongs to the greatest player to ever step on the baseball field; or so you’d believe. Is Juan Soto the best player in MLB history? The New York Mets are paying him like it, but if we’re going to start comparing expectations to salaries, every elementary school teacher out there mine as well rebel.

We’re witnessing close to the floor of what Soto will offer the Mets. It’s a reality every fan will need to accept. Soto is a highly paid player not because of what he’ll do every season but what he can offer in several seasons of his Mets tenure.

Struggling to accept the numbers he has put up this year? Don’t think of it in a year-to-year perspective. View Soto through a different lens. Otherwise, you mine as well never watch another game again.

Juan Soto isn't having the season any Mets fan signed up for

Soto’s inability to hit with runners in scoring position is the great pet peeve of 2025. It’ll be the club’s death sentence in October, foretold in the season opener when he made the final out against the Houston Astros.

Certain numbers will tell us Soto isn’t having a horrid year which is fair because he isn’t. Others say he’s way overpaid for what he has contributed. So which is it? Cherrypick whichever numerals you want to make your case. This isn’t a court of law. This is baseball.

Here’s the reality: Soto is a capable hitter with unexpected results each season. He has shown an ability to hit for power and average and in some years. In other seasons, it’s one or the other. This year, power has been the predominant driving force for his success along with an abundance of walks. Unfortunately, the strikeout totals are creeping up, too.

Tuesday’s game included a pair of walks and strikeouts. His batting average dipped onto the ugly side of acceptable to .249. He now has 94 strikeouts versus 87 walks. It doesn’t feel like pitchers are so frightened of him.

Soto’s lack of big moments is more emotional than a factual letdown. A 4 RBI game in his two-home run performance versus the Philadelphia Phillies on June 21 is the best we saw from him. Still waiting for his first 3-run home run or grand slam in a Mets uniform, he has only two other games of 3+ RBI. One was in April and the other in May.

We like players who are predictable. It helps knowing what we’re going to get. A version of Soto no one signed up for has showed up more frequently than any other this season. The contract shines the spotlight on him. A .690 OPS with runners in scoring position magnifies it.

We’ll never know exactly which Soto we’re going to get from month-to-month or year-to-year. It’s frustrating, but that’s who he is.