NY Mets: See Juan Soto reaction to boos in first-bat vs. Yankees
Mets outfielder Juan Soto tipped his cap to a hostile reaction as he stepped to the plate against the Yankees on May 16, 2025, at Yankee Stadium.
NEW YORK — There was not much separating the Mets and Yankees in the second game of the Subway Series on Saturday afternoon.
Neither team led by more than one run through the opening eight innings and the two teams were tied between the seventh and eighth innings.
The margin for error was small, and the Mets managed to find their opening in the ninth inning.
The Mets used a walk, infield single, hit by pitch and sacrifice fly to grab the lead off reliever Fernando Cruz and upend the Yankees, 3-2, in front of 47,510 fans at Yankee Stadium.
After Luis Torrens drew his second walk of the game, Baty knocked a sharp grounder to the right side that rattled in and out of the glove of DJ LeMahieu, who slid to knock it down. Then Tyrone Taylor was hit by a pitch on a near-check swing. That opened the door for Francisco Lindor to plate the go-ahead run.
Edwin Diaz nailed down the save with a perfect ninth inning, clinching the victory with a strikeout of Aaron Judge on a 98.6 mph fastball.
Over the course of the afternoon, the Yankees’ Clarke Schmidt and Mets’ Griffin Canning were each sharp.
Despite issuing a season-high five walks, Schmidt was pitch efficient, allowing two earned runs on three hits and striking out five. He threw 88 pitches in 6.1 innings.
Meanwhile, Griffin Canning was in line for the win before he surrendered a game-tying solo home run to Cody Bellinger to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning. Canning allowed three of his seven hits in the frame and was pulled at 5.1 innings He surrendered two earned runs while striking out four.
The Yankees first two runs came on home runs, with LeMahieu supplying the go-ahead solo blast to right field in the third inning. The Mets countered with two hits and three walks in the fourth, moving ahead 2-1 on an RBI single by Alonso and sacrifice fly from Mark Vientos.
Mets scrape across go-ahead run in the ninth
Runs have been tough to come by for the Mets over the last week, but they managed to collect the most meaningful one off Fernando Cruz in the top of the ninth inning.
Luis Torrens drew a leadoff walk and was replaced by Luisangel Acuña as a pinch runner. It made a difference in the next at-bat as Brett Baty knocked an sharp single to the right side that bounced out of the glove of DJ LeMahieu.
Tyrone Taylor was hit by a pitch in the next at-bat and Francisco Lindor drove in the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly to center field.
Reed Garrett works in and out of trouble
The control was not there for the Mets’ Reed Garrett, who entered the eighth to face the heart of the Yankees’ batting order, but the righty managed to skirt through trouble.
After issuing a leadoff walk to Cody Bellinger, Garrett induced a double play. Then, two walks and a double to Anthony Volpe loaded the bases.
DJ LeMahieu scalded a line drive to right field but Juan Soto was able to glove it for the final out of the frame. The Mets and Yankees are headed to the ninth inning tied at 2-2.
Fernando Cruz arrives to stop Mets threat
The Mets had another chance to take the lead in the eighth inning but Yankees reliever Fernando Cruz kept things square.
After Pete Alonso doubled off Tim Hill to left-center field and moved over to third on the second out, Cruz came on to face Mark Vientos. The Yankees reliever got Vientos to swing through a splitter to keep Alonso stranded at third base and the score tied at 2-2.
Brett Baty thrown out at home plate as Yankees’ defense shines
Through the first six innings, the Mets had only collected two hits against Clarke Schmidt. After Luis Torrens singled to run Schmidt from the game, the Mets had an optimal chance to go ahead snuffed out by a beautiful defensive play from the Yankees.
After Brett Baty reached on a fielder’s choice, Tyrone Taylor laced a double into left-center field but Cody Bellinger cut off the line drive, threw to Anthony Volpe, who made a one-hop throw to home plate to tag Baty out.
The sterling defensive play, which was reviewed and upheld, kept the score at 2-2. In the next at-bat, DJ LeMahieu made a sliding back-handed stop and quick throw to rob Francisco Lindor of a hit.
Cody Bellinger evens score with long ball, Mets avoid further damage
As Griffin Canning entered the sixth inning, the Mets starter was greeted by a 432-foot, game-tying solo home run from Cody Bellinger.
It was Bellinger’s sixth home run of the year.
The Yankees ran Canning from the game with back-to-back one-out singles by Jasson Dominguez and Anthony Volpe, but Huascar Brazoban and the Mets defense shut down the threat there. Pete Alonso threw out Dominguez at home plate on a chopper to the right side and Brazoban induced another ground ball from DJ LeMahieu to keep the score 2-2.
Griffin Canning buckles down in fifth inning
Griffin Canning was in danger of surrendering the Mets’ 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fifth after allowing the first two hitters to reach. The righty walked J.C. Escarra and gave up a single to DJ LeMahieu, but he managed to end the threat without any damage.
Canning struck out Jorbit Vivas, induced a line drive to right field by Ben Rice and then jammed Aaron Judge for the final out of the fifth inning.
Pete Alonso, top of Mets lineup breaks through against Clarke Schmidt
After one turn through the Mets’ lineup, Yankees right-hander Clarke Schmidt had worked three economical, clean innings.
But on the second journey through the Mets’ lineup, the advantage went to the hitters in the top of the fourth inning. The Mets took the lead after Francisco Lindor drew a leadoff walk, moved over on a Juan Soto single.
Pete Alonso cashed in on an RBI single to left field, giving him 37 RBI on the season. After Soto stole third base, Mark Vientos gave the Mets a 2-1 lead with a sacrifice fly to left field.
The Mets loaded the bases on back-to-back walks but Baty lined out to left field on the first pitch he saw from Schmidt in his second at-bat.
DJ LeMahieu strikes first for Yankees
As the Yankees and Mets worked into the third inning, both Schmidt and Griffin Canning were locked in a pitcher’s duel.
Schmidt began his day with three perfect innings on 27 pitches with three strikeouts, including sending Juan Soto down swinging on a sinker. Canning countered with two perfect innings on 23 pitches.
But DJ LeMahieu broke up the Mets starter’s early gem with a solo shot to the short porch in right field that rattled around in the front row. It gave the Yankees an early 1-0 lead.
It was LeMahieu’s first home run of the season after he returned from a left calf injury on Tuesday.
Mets add Jose Castillo to active roster
The Mets once again have two left-handed relievers in their bullpen.
After acquiring Jose Castillo from the Diamondbacks for cash on Thursday, the Mets activated him for Saturday’s game while optioning Dedniel Nuñez to Triple-A Syracuse.
Castillo joins Genesis Cabrera as the two southpaw relievers for the Mets. The duo’s spots with the Mets come after A.J. Minter suffered a torn lat and Danny Young a left elbow strain. Both injuries require season-ending surgery.
The 29-year-old Castillo has pitched in five games for the Diamondbacks this season, allowing eight earned runs on 10 hits and three walks. He broke into the major leagues as one of the Padres’ top pitching prospects in 2018 and notched a 3.29 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 38⅓ innings before undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2021.
“He’s a lefty that throws hard. He’s got a breaking ball, a slider,” Carlos Mendoza said. “We saw him not too long ago. This is a guy that when he’s healthy, he’s got the talent.”
Mendoza said that Nuñez’s demotion comes as a way to get the right-hander back on track after posting a 1.91 WHIP in his first five outings.
“I feel like even though the past two outings, he’s been better, we just need to see consistency with strike throwing,” Mendoza said. “That’s what made this guy elite last year and became who he was last year for us.”
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