Mets dominate Giants, get encouraging news on Juan Soto

They got seven shutout innings from Clay Holmes as the offense exploded for a second straight day at Oracle Park

What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️

• The Mets kept their offense rolling last night, stomping the Giants 9-0 (box)

• RHP Clay Holmes delivered a lockdown performance, allowing just three hits in his scoreless seven innings of work. He issued just two walks against four strikeouts

• Holmes is the first of the Mets’ starters this season to pitch into the seventh inning

• RHP Tobias Myers finished things off with two perfect innings in relief

• 1B Mark Vientos continued his hot start to the season with a three-hit game, scoring two runs and driving in another. He’s hitting .471 with a 1.291 OPS through his first six games

• LF Tyrone Taylor broke the game open with a pinch-hit three-run homer in the fifth inning; Taylor went 2-for-3 with four RBI on the evening

• 2B Marcus Semien and 3B Bo Bichette stayed hot, each registering back-to-back multi-hit nights and driving in a run apiece

• After mustering just seven runs since the start of this road trip, the Mets have now scored 17 runs in the last two days

• The Mets signed RHP Luke Jackson to a minor league contract (Athletic)

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Injury Updates 🏥

• LF Juan Soto has a mild calf strain and is day-to-day, says he feels better already (MLB.com)

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Play of the Game ⭐️

As with Friday’s matchup, there were quite a few highlights from yesterday’s game to sift through, but ultimately, the answer was obvious.

Tyrone Taylor, come collect your flowers.

In the top of the fifth inning, after the rest of the lineup had knocked out Giants starter Landen Roupp out of the game, Taylor was called upon in place of Jared Young to face lefty reliever Ryan Borucki.

On the 1-2 pitch, Taylor did exactly what everyone expected: he hammered a 420-foot, three-run bomb to put the Mets ahead 8-0. It was Taylor’s first hit of the year.

He then drove in the Mets’ ninth and final run of the night on a well-hit grounder to the opposite field in the seventh inning, finishing his night 2-for-3 with four RBI.

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Who’s Hot 🔥

• Mark Vientos, first six games: .471/.526/.765, 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 3 R

• Francisco Alvarez, first eight games: .286/.375/.762, 2B, 3 HR, 3 RBI, 5 R

• Juan Soto, first eight games: .355/.412/.516, 2 2B, HR, 5 RBI, 3 R

• Luis Robert Jr.: .280/.455/400, HR, 6 RBI, 4 R

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The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️

ICYMI: Join Andrew and Rich as they draft their presumed home run leaders for the 2026 season in this preview of the Just Mets podcast on Patreon.

To watch the full episode, subscribe to our Patreon.

SUBSCRIBE: YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

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Down on the Farm 🌾

• C Hayden Senger (Triple-A): 2-for-3, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB

• DH Nick Morabito (No. 12 prospect, Triple-A): 1-for-5, HR, 1 K

• CF Cristian Pache (Triple-A): 1-for-3, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 SB

• CF A.J. Ewing (No. 3 prospect, Double-A): 1-for-3, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB

• RF Eli Serrano III (No. 13 prospect, Double-A): 1-for-3, 1 3B, 1 BB

BOX SCORES

Single-A STL | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR

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Today’s Game 🗓

Match-up: Mets (5-4) at Giants (3-6)

Where: Oracle Park - San Francisco, CA

Starters: RHP Kodai Senga (0-1, 3.00 ERA) vs. RHP Logan Webb (1-1, 7.36 ERA)

When: 4:05 PM EDT

Where to Watch: SNY

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Wheels are (maybe, finally?) starting to turn ✍️

And this is why a team shouldn’t be declared dead when the season’s a week old.

Last night, the Mets handed the Giants a second-straight drubbing, and they played a complete, mostly clean game on both sides of the ball. Bo Bichette made an ugly throw, but he also made a nice backhanded stop along the baseline; Lindor went 0-for at the plate, but flashed some leather in the field to prevent an extra-base hit. Throughout the lineup, just about everyone showed up when their name was called.

This was the definition of a ‘grindy’ win: nine runs on 12 hits, only three of them for extra bases and not many walks. After opening the game 0-for-3 with three strikeouts, Mets hitters were disciplined in the box — they saw more than four pitches per plate appearance (P/PA) on average against Landen Roupp, working him for 95 pitches over 4.2 innings of work. From there, they wore down the bullpen, put the ball in play consistently, and took advantage of the Giants’ mistakes, essentially the same formula that won them their first two games this season.

Some continued praise is due to Mark Vientos, who is off to the best possible start to the season he could’ve asked for. Despite an unproductive spring training and WBC, Vientos has exploded out of the gate, taking advantage of his playing time by shining both at the plate and in the field. Not only is Vientos hitting nearly .500 to open the year — he’s also demonstrating that he has all the makings of a more-than-capable defensive first baseman (what was likely always his natural position anyway). For a player whose defense was always as big a question mark as his offensive consistency, he looks far more comfortable at first than he ever did at third. Vientos said after the game that he feels like an ‘everyday first baseman’ out there, and in limited action, he’s looking the part. With Jorge Polanco nursing a nagging Achilles and swinging a still-cold bat, Vientos should clearly be the primary first base option going forward until his offense suggests otherwise.

It should also be acknowledged that Bo Bichette and Marcus Semien might be locking into something. Maybe it’s just natural nerves settling, maybe it’s their bats coming out of hibernation, but both Bichette and Semien have tallied back-to-back multi-hit performances, with each responsible for at least five RBI on the season; Bichette and Luis Robert lead the team with six each.

After the particularly frigid start this pair got off to, it’s fun to watch the ice thaw. Looking at their hitting data, no obvious trends are jumping out to me that scream, ‘This is why they’re hitting now!’ Bichette has been a bit more conservative with his swing decisions the last two games, so maybe that’s the recipe for him…but with Semien, the answer is less obvious. Perhaps he’s simply seeing the ball better now that he’s logged some substantial game time.

Brett Baty and Tyrone Taylor each contributed multiple hits, as well, which further demonstrates just how deep this lineup can be. When all cylinders are firing, this is a team that can easily put 10 runs on the board, even without Juan Soto, while also keeping opponent run creation to a minimum without totally exhausting the bullpen. For all the quips about ‘run prevention,’ note that the Mets currently have allowed the fourth-fewest runs in the league, with the pitching staff boasting a collective ERA of 3.02, sixth-best in MLB. On defense, their +5 DRS ranks fifth in baseball. Run prevention hasn’t been the problem; it’s run creation that’s been proving elusive.

To further illustrate just how massive this weekend’s scoring deluge has been:

• Total Runs Scored through 4/2: 25 (17th in MLB)

• Total Runs Scored through 4/5: 44 (6th in MLB)

We’ve seen what a difference a few days can make; if the bats can continue to capitalize on this heat while the pitching maintains its own hot streak, the anxiously optimistic air encircling these new-look Mets could be very different in a matter of weeks.

Speaking of Soto and lineup angst, a quick note: though the injury doesn’t sound all that serious, we’re early enough in the season where it can’t hurt to treat an injury as more severe than it is. Of course he doesn’t want to go on the IL — he really wants that MVP — but if a brief break can help him rest his legs, this is the time to do it. The Mets should only send Soto back out on that field if the medical staff is 100% confident that there’s little to no chance of reinjury. No sense risking any further issues in April that could then permanently derail the main mission in May.

(© Jeff Curry-Imagn Images)

Then, of course, there’s Clay Holmes.

I was hopeful that the WBC would be a reliable harbinger of impending excellence from this guy, and my wish appears to have come true. This is one of the best outings Holmes has had since putting on a Mets uniform: seven innings, three hits, no runs, and 60 strikes on 90 pitches. Holmes was attacking hitters with just about everything in his bag, and he was throwing everything for strikes — he finished his night with a 68% strike rate, including 14 called strikes.

What’s particularly exciting to see from Holmes is just how much his pitch mix has evolved over a little more than a year as a full-time starter. What started as a three-tool bag has turned into a five-pitch arsenal with arguably three plus-grade shapes, and he’s added a new weapon in both years he’s been with the Mets. Last year, it was the ‘kick change’ that became a swing-and-miss machine; this year, it’s a tantalizing curveball I cannot wait to see more of.

Though it’s a new pitch for Holmes, he seems to be getting a handle on it quickly. Based on its tighter, more vertical shape and where he’s tended to throw it so far, it could work well on the inside corners to both righties and lefties as an offspeed option that tumbles off the flatter lateral profile set by his sinker and sweeper. Though his changeup also plays way down in the zone, it works heavily towards his arm side; the curveball has more neutral horizontal movement, so he should be able to dot it more effectively all over the lower parts of the zone opposite that more severe changeup. He hasn’t called on the curve much yet this year (12 times total), but keep an eye on its usage over the next few outings; I expect its punchout potential will only increase.

With a five-pitch mix working effectively and the ability to go seven innings, Clay Holmes is the ideal arm to anchor the back end of a playoff-caliber rotation. A season removed from leading the team in starts and wins in his first year as a starter, he’s leading the pack again, stranding nearly 92% of baserunners and keeping over 65% of batted balls on the ground. If there’s more of this version of Clay Holmes on the horizon, the Mets should indeed prove to have one of the league’s deepest rotations; couple that with a full-tilt offense, and they’ve got all the ingredients necessary for something really special.

They’ve put it on display several times in these opening few games. Now they need to sustain it into April.

The team looks to lock back into this stream of offensive energy in the series finale today, as Kodai Senga takes the mound seeking to extend his own hot start. A win today could send the Mets back to Queens with a massive amount of momentum to carry into their home stand against the Snakes and A’s.

With a road series against the Dodgers looming next week, this is the right time to get hot.

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Around the League 🚩

• The Blue Jays acquired INF Tyler Fitzgerald from the Giants for cash

• Angels RF Jo Adell robbed three Mariners of homers last night in a 1-0 win in Anaheim (Watch)

• Giancarlo Stanton stole his first base since 2024 in the Yankees’ 9-7 win over the Marlins

• Munetaka Murakami homered in his home field debut, becoming the first Japanese player and first White Sox rookie to hit four homers in their first eight MLB games

• Justin Verlander has been placed on the 15-Day IL with hip inflammation and will miss his long-awaited return to Detroit (MLB.com)

• Mookie Betts exited the Dodgers’ game against the Nationals in the first inning and will be getting an MRI on his back (MLB.com)