New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza and $765 million superstar Juan Soto disagreed over the outfielder’s hustle — or lack thereof — in the team’s most recent stretch of games.
After the Mets’ 3-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Monday, Mendoza told reporters he would talk to his star outfielder for not hustling out of the box.
Read more: Mets’ Carlos Mendoza Calls Out Juan Soto, Who Openly Disagrees With Manager’s Criticism
In the top of the sixth inning, Soto hit a ball to left field that he thought was going to be a home run off the bat. Soto admired the ball and even stepped back into foul ground before jogging to first base.
The ball, however, hit the Green Monster and came back into play. Soto settled for a single on what should have been a double — but did end up stealing second base right after.
Juan Soto singles off the Green Monster and then steals second base on the next pitch pic.twitter.com/BQoIQAkmlO
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 20, 2025
Nevertheless, Mendoza said he would have a conversation with Soto after the game.
“We’ll talk to him about it,” Mendoza said. “Tonight, obviously, if someone gets a hold of one and knows when he gets it, it’s Juan. He thought he had it. With the wind and all that, in this ballpark — anywhere, in any one, but particularly in this one with that wall right there — you’ve got to get out of the box. Yeah, we’ll discuss that.”
Soto, however, didn’t agree with his manager’s assessment of his lack of hustle.
More news: Mets’ Juan Soto Wanted to Re-Sign With Yankees in Free Agency, Says New York Insider
“I think I’ve been hustling pretty hard,” Soto said. “If you saw it today, you could tell.”
Due to the disagreement between Soto and Mendoza, this story became a bigger deal than it needed to be. MLB Network analysts Robert Flores and Mark DeRosa put the blame on Soto for not taking accountability
“It’s not a big deal. But here’s where Juan probably made the mistake — saying, ‘I’m hustling,’” Flores said. “Just kind of play the game and everyone can move on and just say, ‘You know what, I gotta be better.’ But now it’s gonna become a thing.”
#MLBCentral reacts to Carlos Mendoza’s postgame comments on Juan Soto. pic.twitter.com/6RgrNNXZfo
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) May 20, 2025
DeRosa agreed with Flores, saying Soto needs to be better — especially considering his contract.
“My only thing to Juan,” DeRosa said, “is you put your manager — and I don’t know if you care — in a terrible spot.”
He added: “I would just say, this is gonna blow over, but Juan you can’t sit there and honestly say to yourself in the last two nights that you hustled down the line. Come on, man. Like don’t put your team and your manager in that spot.”
Soto is hitting .246/.376/.439 with eight home runs, 20 RBIs, 37 walks to 33 strikeouts and an OPS of .815. His lowest end-of-season OPS in his career is .853.
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