NEW YORK — Still chanting "MVP, MVP" for leadoff man Francisco Lindor, the home-opener crowd of 43,945 at Citi Field shifted into a roar as Juan Soto emerged for his first on-field introduction as a member of the New York Mets.
The superstar slugger, lured away from the New York Yankees in free agency with a record-setting $765-million, 15-year contract, looked around, seemingly soaking in the moment, and then jogged down the first-base line, high-fiving his new teammates. Once settled into his spot beside Lindor, he turned to acknowledge the Toronto Blue Jays, one of the four teams to aggressively bid for him before he committed to Queens.
Right behind Soto was Pete Alonso, another player the Blue Jays explored signing during the off-season, adding a what-might-have-been element to the matchup between a host team that’s arguably become the game’s most imposing financial force and an aspirational visiting club showing the capacity and desire to spend at top-tier levels, too.
“We're in the spot to where we can pursue those players and that's encouraging,” manager John Schneider said beforehand of what he wants his players to take from the unsuccessful but high-profile chases. “Every case is obviously different when you're pursuing a free agent and a lot has to line up. But within that, where you land is where you land. I love where we've landed with the players and the people that are in this clubhouse... What we're always trying to do is make our team better and there are a lot of ways to do that. There have been some high-profile free agents that are just really talented. When that doesn't come to fruition, you pivot and you build as best you can. But I love the way we landed.”
Hours later, the fingerprints of Soto and Alonso were all over a 5-0 victory Friday afternoon that ended a four-game Blue Jays winning streak. Soto’s seven-pitch pop up in the first after a Lindor double set the stage for Alonso’s two-run homer and the lefty slugger helped break the game open in a three-run sixth with an RBI double off rookie lefty Mason Fluharty.
After Alonso was walked intentionally, Brandon Nimmo’s RBI double and Starling Marte’s sacrifice fly pushed the edge to five on a grey afternoon as the Mets returned home for the first time since sending the NL Championship to a sixth game in Los Angeles last October.
At that point, it wasn’t clear if Alonso would be back and the adoration for him was evident beyond the curtain call after his home run. In between those two games, the Blue Jays “were definitely one of the teams that reached out” and “we did listen,” he said, “but ultimately, New York, this was the best opportunity for me.”
“I'm really good buddies with a lot of guys over there,” Alonso added. “Me and Jose (Berrios) work out at the same spot. Me and Chris (Bassitt), super-tight, me and Max (Scherzer), super-tight. I've played against Bo (Bichette) and Vladdy (Guerrero Jr.) since high-A (in 2017). I have a good rapport with a bunch of guys over there. They were one of the teams that reached out. But I mean for me, coming back here was, by far, the best option.”
The same, obviously, ended up true for Soto, although the Blue Jays are said to have impressed during an initial meeting in November out in Newport Beach, Calif., when the club also met with fellow free agents Corbin Burnes and Alex Bregman. A subsequent digital presentation to Soto also helped keep the Blue Jays in the mix, but the Mets weren’t to be deterred, leading to the pre-game serenade.
“It was very cool to see all the fans out there cheering for you and supporting the whole team,” said Soto. “It was a really good experience and a great start.”
The early lead, thanks to Alonso and add-on runs later, was too much for the Blue Jays to overcome as Tylor Megill kept them under wraps for 5.1 innings. A big assist came from Reed Garrett in the sixth, who took over after walks to Guerrero Jrand Anthony Santander and struck out both Andres Gimenez and Alejandro Kirk to end the threat.
Strikeouts in leverage were the difference there, noticeably absent when the three-run sixth got away from the Blue Jays, and key again in the top of the seventh when A.J. Minter took out the side after George Springer’s leadoff single.
Kevin Gausman didn’t strike out a single batter in his 5.1 innings and the Blue Jays didn’t get their first K until Luisangel Acuna went down swinging for the second out of the seventh inning.
Still, Gausman navigated a deep Mets lineup effectively without his best fastball, which averaged 94 m.p.h. but was up to 96.1 but bottomed out at 90.3. He got only five whiffs on 44 swings but still allowed only two hits and two walks, including the Alonso homer, which came on a 95.1 m.p.h. fastball down and away out of the zone, but still ended up in the right-field seats, possibly with the help of a swirling wind.
“At the time I just kind of tipped my cap to him,” said Gausman. “With a guy like him you never really know because he's so strong ... watching it back, I thought I made a really good pitch. I thought I beat him. But a homer's a homer.”
Said Alonso: “He made a good pitch. It was probably two balls off the dish and I was just trying to hit a hard line drive and spoil the at-bat because he made a pitcher's pitch. … Thankfully, it carried out of the yard.”
And helped ensure Alonso’s return to Citi Field – and Soto’s Mets home debut – got off to a positive start, at the expense of a Blue Jays team that could have been their own.
