Spanish
NEW YORK.– The Mets announced this Tuesday that the Dominican star Juan Soto will defend left field during the 2026 season, as reported by the club's president of baseball operations, David Stearns, at the opening of spring training.
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Soto, who mostly served as a right fielder since 2021, will return to left field, a position he knows well from his beginnings in the Major Leagues. In 2018 he started 112 games in left field and in 2019 he was a starter in 150 games in that position, a season in which the Washington Nationals conquered the first World Series in the history of the franchise. Subsequently, the slugger transitioned to right field in 2021 and has since played almost exclusively in that corner, with the exception of 2023, when he played 154 games in left field with the San Diego Padres. In 2025, Soto recorded -12 Outs Above Average (OAA) as a right fielder with the Mets, although he ranked in the 66th percentile in arm strength. His best defensive performance was precisely in left field, where he accumulated +5 OAA in 2019. With this move, the team seeks to optimize its outfield defense. The right fielder position could be occupied by Tyrone Taylor or the promising prospect Carson Benge, while Soto focuses on providing defensive stability and maintaining his offensive impact in the heart of the batting order. The adjustment marks a new stage for the Dominican in New York, with the expectation that the change will allow him to maximize his overall performance in the 2026 season.
