Juan Soto joins exclusive club after latest home run

New York Mets star slugger Juan Soto has found himself back in the spotlight after a long and arduous slump threatened to leave his new fanbase with a bad first impression. 

In his past 15 games, Soto is hitting .358/.521/.755 with six home runs. This surge has raised his on-base percentage above .400 for the first time since July, keeping his streak of consecutive .400+ OBP seasons alive for now. But this isn’t the only rare feat Soto will add to his Hall of Fame resume should he finish the season with a .400 OBP. 

Juan Soto joins a club consisting of just two elite players with a rare feat 

On Sunday against the Cincinnati Reds, Soto hit his 38^th home run of the year. Per Stats Perform, when combined with his 117 walks and 29 stolen bases, this marks an ultra-rare accomplishment that has only been done five times in MLB history by just two other players: Barry Bonds (1993, 1996, 1997) and Jeff Bagwell (1997, 1999). Soto is now the third player in baseball to collect 38 home runs, 117 walks and 29 stolen bases in a single season. 

Soto’s 38 home runs are the second-most in his career, with time left to top his career-high of 41, which he tallied with the New York Yankees last year. While no one should be surprised about Soto’s power production or his staggering walk rate, his 29 steals are nothing short of stunning. Throughout his career, Soto has never stolen more than 12 bases. In addition, Soto has been caught just three times this year. What makes this achievement all the more remarkable is that Soto is among the slowest sprinters in the game, ranking in the 15^th percentile in sprint speed this season according to Baseball Savant. 

Hitting .262/.401/.527 with his 38 home runs and 29 steals on the year, Soto probably won’t be the 2025 NL MVP. Nonetheless, it has been a remarkable season for Soto, who is just one steal away from posting a 30-30 season. Much to the delight of Mets fans, their $765 million right-fielder has been a large part of the team’s success as the Mets cling to the last wild-card spot by four games over the Reds and San Francisco Giants entering Monday.