Mets Notebook: Soto’s baserunning, Peterson, winning with small ball

QUEENS — When the Mets signed Juan Soto this past offseason, they did so knowing that his skill set is limited. He makes his money in the batter’s box.

However, despite a 0-for-3 day on Sunday, it was the superstar’s baserunning that saved the day, helping his club stave off a sweep.

After limping to the finish line in the first half (losers in 18 of 28 entering the All-Star Break), the Mets began their second half in similar fashion, dropping the first two games against Cincinnati.

Across the first two games of the series, the Mets’ inconsistent offense came up empty, mustering just six runs in two games. Sunday was far from an offensive outburst in its own right, as the two sides went to the bottom of the eighth inning in a 2-2 deadlock.

Facing Reds’ lefty reliever Brent Suter, Soto worked out a leadoff walk, albeit with some help from the home plate umpire. He moved to third on a double by Jeff McNeil, bringing Luis Torrens to bat with Soto 90 feet away.

The catcher stung a sharp grounder to second base 102.7 mph off the bat, which with Soto’s 17th percentile sprint speed, seemed to be too hard hit to bring in the leading tally.

But Soto got an excellent jump off third, and snuck in ahead of the tag from Tyler Stephenson, to put the Mets up 3-2.

“The contact [play] was on,” manager Carlos Mendoza said in a postgame press conference. “But, you know, you’ve got to be able to execute it, and he did. The primary lead, and then the timing of the secondary [lead] that allows him to get a great jump at contact and score easily … that’s how you teach it.”

Sunday’s play at the plate is just the latest example of a surprising trend, which shows Soto being a proficient baserunner.

Baseball Savant places Soto in the 70th percentile league-wide by baserunning run value, and despite playing just 99 games this year, has already tied a career-high with 12 stolen bases.

Even while being a bat-first player, Soto finds ways to help the team win, even when the hits are not falling.

“Any way that you can help the team to win a ballgame is great,” Soto said. “The hitting isn’t going my way right now, but I try my best to help the team on defense, running, any way I can do it.”

Peterson coming up aces

After losing the first two games of this past weekend’s series, things did not get any easier for the Mets. Sunday brought a matchup with Cincinnati’s best starting pitcher: 2025 All-Star Andrew Abbott.

Luckily for Mendoza, he had the luxury of sending his own All-Star to the mound in David Peterson, making for a top-tier battle of lefties in front of a sold-out Citi Field. Taking Kodai Senga’s month on the shelf into consideration, Peterson is the best that New York has had to offer this year, lowering his ERA on Sunday to a sparkling 2.90 ERA through 19 starts.

Sunday was no exception, as he outdueled Abbott for six innings. His day did not start according to plan, as an error by Luisangel Acuña and a pair of singles that followed plated a run for the Reds before Peterson recorded an out.

From there, he settled down, stranding a pair of baserunners in the first, before striking out Matt McLain to leave the bases loaded in the second.

“Felt good in the bullpen, got out there, and felt a little bit out of sync at the beginning but was able to correct it,” Peterson said. “[I] threw quite a few pitches in the first three innings, and I just wanted to be efficient going forward.

In the seventh, Mendoza turned to Huascar Brazoban, ending Peterson’s day after six innings of one-run ball (unearned), while he scattered four hits and a walk. He threw 93 pitches and struck out four Reds. He retired 12 of the final 13 batters he faced, and induced a pair of double plays.

“He was really good,” Mendoza said. “On a day where I feel like he was missing arm-side, especially with the sinker, he got ground balls. I thought the slider came and went, but he executed when he needed to … For him to go six there, was solid.”

While Peterson’s overall numbers look impressive, all the more impressive are his numbers at home. After his latest gem, Peterson’s ERA at Citi Field sits at 1.91, and the Mets are unbeaten in his 10 home starts in 2025.

With the Mets’ current injury woes, length from their starters has been a tall ask. Outside of a two-start span where he allowed 10 runs in late June, Peterson has allowed three runs or fewer in every start this season. His performance in the series finale marks the third-consecutive start in which he has completed six innings.

In that span (since July 3), no other Mets starter has made it beyond 5 ⅔ innings. Despite his team’s reliance on him to shorten games for the bullpen, Peterson does not see the current situation differently from any other in regards to emptying the tank on the mound.

“You notice it when we have certain guys being used, and you want to try to be able to get it to those guys later in the game,” Peterson said. “It crosses your mind, but I think every start you’re trying to go out there and get as deep as you can and give this team a chance to win.”

Finding a way to win

In 2025, the Mets have relied heavily on their stars playing up to their stardom.

Entering play on Sunday, in New York’s previous 54 wins, Francisco Lindor hit .336 with 18 home runs and a 1.030 OPS. Meanwhile, in their 43 losses, Lindor managed just a .146 batting average with a single home run and a .431 OPS.

It is no coincidence that as Lindor has struggled through much of the summer, as have the orange and blue.

Sunday, however, proved to be an exception from the trend of New York’s top-heavy lineup being the sole producer of any meaningful scoring.

Granted, the Mets scored three runs, left seven runners on base, and went 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, not an impressive figure. Aside from Soto’s eighth-inning walk and mad-dash home, he and Lindor were non-factors at the plate, going a combined 0-for-7. In tandem with Pete Alonso resting for six innings due to a hand contusion, New York’s stars were relatively quiet.

Instead, Mendoza had to rely on the bottom of the order to produce, and in a rare instance this year, they did.

Acuña rebounded from his first inning error with three professional at-bats: a textbook sacrifice bunt, a ringing double off the fence, and a walk.

Tyrone Taylor, who has seen his average drop ever closer to the Mendoza line, hustled out an infield hit and scored the team’s first run. Brett Baty singled and scored while McNeil facilitated the eighth inning score, and Torrens contributed a single and an RBI.

It is nothing flashy, but a day after leaving a small village on base (1-for-10 with RISP) and committing some truly incredible mental and physical mistakes, the Mets did “the little things” properly.

After Acuña’s error to open things, they played a sound game defensively, headlined by a slick short-hop pickup by Baty, a sliding grab by Soto in right field, and another occurrence of Torrens nailing a would-be basestealer. Additionally, Baty stole his fifth base of the season, and they executed a pair of sacrifice bunts on the afternoon.

“There’s going to be stretches where it’s hard,” Mendoza said. “We’ve got guys that are going through it right now, and you have to find a way to create runs. Put pressure on the defense, try to take an extra 90 feet when you can, and I thought we did that today.”

Additional Notes

Alonso was out of the starting lineup for the first time this season, and the first time since May of last season with a right hand contusion. However, he entered the game for defensive purposes, relieving Mark Vientos and went 0-for-1.

“Today, obviously I didn’t start the game, so it was precautionary,” Alonso said. “I think the hand is in a really good spot, especially with swelling and pain management.”

He then said that his swing felt good during his at bat and that he did not reaggravate the injury, adding that both points were “Huge W’s.” Alonso and the Mets will continue to monitor the situation and see how he feels this week.

Edwin Diaz blew his second save of the season, allowing an inherited runner to score the tying run in the eighth inning. Diaz was called upon with two outs in relief of Reed Garrett, but promptly allowed a walk and an infield single, before hitting Spencer Steer to force in the tying run. After the Mets re-took the lead, Ryne Stanek recorded the final three outs.

Following the game, the Mets announced the re-calling up catcher Francisco Alvarez, who had been in Triple-A Syracuse since June 22. Alvarez, started the season ice-cold in the majors, but has been raging hot since his demotion. In his last 15 games in the minors, he has slugged 10 home runs.