Mets players react to controversial comments from Juan Soto 

Outfielder Juan Soto returned to the New York Mets' lineup on Wednesday night and was part of the 3-2 win over the Minnesota Twins that snapped the Mets' 12-game losing streak.

However, Soto raised plenty of eyebrows before the game when he admitted that he hadn't really spoken with teammates during the club's skid, in part because "they’ve been on the road most of the time" while he was recovering from the right calf strain he suffered on April 3. 

Predictably, Soto's comment resurrected takes about the state of his relationships with other Mets players. According to Mets reporter Will Sammon of The Athletic, an unnamed veteran player later insisted that Soto's actions were "completely normal."

Why Juan Soto not speaking with teammates during losing streak is normal

"The Athletic spoke with three Mets veteran players and granted them anonymity in exchange for candor," Sammon wrote. "They all agreed: completely normal. As the veteran players explained, when a player goes on the (injured list) in baseball, he is essentially out of sight, out of mind. The injured player is 'not going through the moment,' as one of the veterans put it. Therefore, they maintain a distance."

Questions about Soto's relationships with the star shortstop Francisco Lindor and other teammates have hovered over the Mets since their collapse last year and since it was reported this past offseason that things between Soto and Lindor were "chilly" throughout the 2025 campaign. Of course, few said anything about the topic when the Mets ended April 7 with a record of 7-4.

The Mets then dropped to 7-16 before Wednesday's victory. 

Mets players defend Juan Soto over perceived controversy

"They’re going through it, and you’re not there," a veteran player told Sammon. "He was here every day and on the top step when we were home. On the road, he’s taking care of business. What’s he going to say in a text message, anyway? What it comes down to is, we’ve needed to do our jobs, and we haven’t."

Meanwhile, a different veteran added that Soto's comments were being "overblown" by some and didn't deserve to be "getting a lot of attention." 

Winning often cures everything for a team, and the Mets will need to do more than notch a single victory to silence those who are convinced Soto is unhappy with his current club. 8-16 New York wraps up its three-game home series versus 12-12 Minnesota on Thursday night.