There’s only 1 way NY Mets fans should feel about Juan Soto after 14 games

For his standards, New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto is probably playing below-average baseball right now. Through 14 games, the newly acquired superstar has just one home run and four RBI, lower numbers than many fans were likely anticipating. Of course, when you're Soto, "below-average baseball" also means you have an OPS of .818 and a 141 wRC+.

Even when he's not at his best, Soto can be attributed for much of the Mets' early-season success as they sit at 9-5, their best start since 2022.

Fans might not be seeing juicy production from Soto yet, as he doesn't have many big hits or runs driven in, but a lot of that can be blamed on the offensive struggles that have plagued over half the lineup. Soto is, however, helping to keep the ship upright as the team works through their offensive woes. He might not be hitting tanks in his at-bats, but with a .410 OBP, he has been doing more than his part offensively. His 12 walks tie him for third in MLB, and he is averaging nearly a hit per game as well.

When you have a player who gets on base as well as Soto does, it can positively impact other members of the team as well. Pete Alonso is off to the best start of his career, and a lot of it has to do with the fact that he's hitting behind Soto. Alonso leads the NL with 18 RBI, and six of those runs have been Soto.

Having a guy like Soto who can consistently get on base and make such an impact on Alonso is crucial when the rest of the lineup has practically been a black hole. The Mets have scored 53 runs this year, and Soto accounts for 12 of them. Soto and Alonso combined account for 20. Without Soto's presence, the Mets would likely be the worst-scoring team in baseball.

Soon enough, Soto's power will come back. The rest of the team will pick it up offensively (fingers crossed), and there will be men on base in enough of his at-bats to drive a lot of them home. Once the team picks it up, and even when it doesn't, we should soon be seeing the Juan Soto that Steve Cohen spent nearly $800 million on -- but for now, things are looking pretty good alread.