Juan Soto injury should be a chance for this NY Mets player to prove himself

The New York Mets won’t have Juan Soto in the lineup for at least 10 days and we can probably guess a whole lot more based on how long it took him and even Francisco Lindor to return from calf injuries earlier this season. There is little reason to force him back onto the field in this lost season. In the immediate aftermath, they’ve called up Eric Wagaman and put together a lineup featuring A.J. Ewing in left field, Luis Robert Jr. in center field, and Carson Benge in right field. Jorge Polanco gets his chance to DH.

Wagaman should have a very limited role with the Mets while he’s here, maybe auditioning for a role next year or with other teams after the trade deadline opens up more space. In the true trade deadline aftermath, any lengthy absence from Soto gives a different player a chance to prove himself.

Assuming the Mets do trade Robert and find a taker for Tyrone Taylor whose contract is set to expire, they’ll have a hole in left field. Why fiddle with Brett Baty in the outfield any longer when you can give Nick Morabito a chance to prove himself.

A lengthy Juan Soto injury more realistically opens up playing time for Nick Morabito

Morabito was always a consideration to replace Taylor on the active roster after the trade deadline with one exception: would the Mets call him up to have a bench role? It’s important that he plays often. In Syracuse, he gets to. On the Mets, even after selling off pieces, there isn’t as much room.

Morabito has hit .264/.376/.401 for Syracuse this year. Adding some power with 9 home runs, it’s the speed that’s most deadly. He has swiped 32 bags in 34 tries. Very pest-like in a similar fashion as Ewing, we saw his limitation firsthand when he was 0 for 11 with 9 strikeouts back in May. Still a top prospect in the Mets system, it seems like a given he’ll at the very least end up as a September call-up to give him a little more experience.

The Mets lack high-level minor league outfield talent at the moment for the simple fact two of their best have already graduated to the majors. Ryan Clifford, a first baseman/corner outfielder is hitting under .200 and not on the 40-man roster currently. Morabito, who was added in the offseason to protect him from getting taken for free in the Rule 5 Draft, it’s even all that far behind in terms of home run power this season.

The loss of Soto for any length of period spoils what was trending toward becoming one of the best seasons by a Mets player ever. That’s not hyperbole. His .947 OPS in 2026 ranks as the tenth best in franchise history. Losing at-bats that’ll make this unqualified will have this becoming one of those really good “what if” types of campaigns.

Focus is currently on the trade deadline and not so much about positive history making results. For the sake of interest in the Mets, we can only hope Soto isn’t completely done in 2026 even if it’s understandable why they should be cautious and not just for draft positioning.

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