"Something is not right with Juan Soto" - Fans concerned by Mets' $765M star's unsual approach at-plate vs. Red Sox's Garret Crochet

Fans reacted as New York Mets star Juan Soto showed an unusual approach in his at-bats against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. In Wednesday’s game, Soto, facing Red Sox pitcher Garrett Crochet in the first inning, didn’t swing and recorded a strikeout.

Soto’s next two at-bats followed the same pattern, each ending in strikeouts. In the seventh inning, however, he hit a sacrifice fly that helped his team establish a 4-1 lead.

Later in the ninth inning, he walked. The Mets clinched a 5-1 win in the series finale to avoid a sweep as several fans weighed in on Soto’s performance:

“Something is definitely not right with him. I’m still not convinced he regrets signing with the Mets, but I think he will soon,” a fan said.

Comment byu/boobythrowaway1 from discussion inbaseball

“This is really not the Juan we knew. This is the opposite of the Juan we knew. I won’t speculate here what’s wrong, but something clearly is,” another fan said.

“$750 Million and he won't even swing the bat at strikes,” another fan wrote.

Many others continued to express their views:

“Going to go down as one of the worst contracts in sports history 😂😂,” a comment reads.

“Juan Soto scammed the Mets,” another comment reads.

“Getting moved from second to third in the order is technically being “dropped” but only a moron would consider it at all similar to actually being dropped in the order,” someone wrote.

The Mets took an early lead in the second inning on Brett Baty’s RBI single, which the Red Sox tied in the fifth. In the seventh, the New York team added three more runs to their tally. Then in the ninth, Francisco Lindor hit a solo home run, helping seal their 5-1 victory in the series finale.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza discusses lineup changes, including shifting Juan Soto

Juan Soto was shifted from the second spot in the batting order to third, with Pete Alonso batting fourth and Francisco Lindor in the lead-off spot. Discussing the changes, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said (via NY Daily News):

“I’m trying to shuffle some things around. I’m not a guy that likes to overreact. I like consistency, giving guys chances, but I just felt today was a day to move some people around, and especially the guys at the top facing a lefty.”

“I knew I was going to move Soto to third and Pete to fourth, I was looking for a right-handed bat for the two-hole and he came down to Mark [Vientos] or Marte. I decided to go with Marte today…”

Starling Marte was placed second in the lineup. The Mets are scheduled to face the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on Friday.