Juan Soto reacts at the plate.
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The New York Mets’ star slugger Juan Soto should sit out up to 10 days, a top sports dictor now says.
Juan Soto’s calf injury is drawing concern beyond the Mets, as a sports medicine doctor issued a troubling update after his MRI. The good news is that Soto’s right calf MRI came back showing only a minor strain. The not-so-good news — at least for Mets fans hoping to see him back in the lineup in a day or two — is that a prominent sports medicine doctor is recommending the New York Mets shut Soto down for 7 to 10 days.
Dr. Jesse Morse, a Florida-based sports medicine physician who regularly posts detailed breakdowns of prominent athlete injuries on social media, weighed in on Soto’s situation Saturday on X (formerly Twitter). His read was measured but pointed.
“Minor calf strain, likely grade 1,” Dr. Morse wrote Saturday on X. “It would be smart for him to shut it down for 7 to 10 days and inject the calf with either PRP or, ideally, an allograft stem cell product.”
Potential Danger to Soto’s Achilles Cited
Morse also flagged a longer-term concern that goes well beyond the strain itself. “Calf (usually gastrocnemius) strains are tricky and are notorious for reinjury (similar to the groin),” he added. “Also want to make sure the Achilles doesn’t get impacted, as we saw a lot in the NBA during the 2025 season (i.e., Jayson Tatum, etc.).”
That’s the part that should make Mets fans nervous. A reinjured calf that then affects the Achilles is a nightmare scenario — and exactly the kind of thing that turns a week on the shelf into a month or more, possibly much more in the worst-case Achilles tendon scenario.
For now, the Mets are taking it one day at a time. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza described the situation as “mixed” Saturday, per MLB.com‘s Mike Puma — confirming the minor strain while expressing genuine surprise at how well Soto was moving around the Oracle Park clubhouse in San Francisco, where the Mets are playing a weekend series against the Giants. Mendoza termed Soto day to day and said the team will assess how he responds to treatment over the next 48 to 72 hours. An injured list placement does not appear imminent, but Mendoza would not rule it out.
Soto himself was upbeat when he spoke with reporters.
“It’s impressive what we saw on the imaging because I feel way better than yesterday,” Soto told ESPN’s Alden González. “I definitely feel really good, and to see what came out on the MRI, it was surprising for me.”
Soto did not rule out playing in Sunday’s series finale against San Francisco, but Mendoza made clear he’s in no rush to put his superstar back out there.
How Soto Got Hurt, And What the MRI Revealed
Soto injured the calf Friday night in the first inning of the Mets’ 10-3 win over the Giants at Oracle Park, as reported by MLB.com, straining it while running from first to third on a Bo Bichette single. He was pulled before the Mets took the field in the bottom of the first, with Tyrone Taylor replacing him in left.
The MRI Saturday morning confirmed what the team feared. MLB Trade Rumors reported the imaging revealed a minor strain, what Morse classified as likely a grade 1, the least severe level. Grade 1 strains involve minor muscle fiber damage without a full tear, and can take a week or even two to heal. But as Morse noted, the calf is notoriously unforgiving when it comes to reinjury, which is exactly why his 7 to 10-day recommendation carries weight.
MLB Trade Rumors also noted that even with favorable imaging, the Mets could opt for a precautionary 10-day IL stint, which would correspond almost exactly with what Dr. Morse advised.
Mets Roll Without Soto But They Need Him Back
In their first game without Soto, New York breezed by San Francisco, winning by a 9-0 score Saturday night, with Taylor — the same outfielder who replaced Soto on Friday — launching a pinch-hit three-run homer and adding an RBI single to finish with four RBI. Clay Holmes threw seven scoreless innings. The Mets have now scored 17 runs in 17 frames since Soto went down.
But Soto, who was slashing .355/.412/.516 with a .928 OPS through eight games, per SI.com reporter Pat Ragazzo, is the heartbeat of the New York lineup, and the Mets are also currently managing first baseman Jorge Polanco’s Achilles tendinitis. Losing both sluggers for any stretch of time would be a significant blow. If Dr. Morse’s 7 to 10-day window holds, Soto’s earliest realistic return would fall around April 12-15, in the middle of New York’s upcoming homestand against the Athletics.