Soto's Three-Run Blast Buries Miami Before It Starts

Juan Soto hit a 417-foot three-run homer in the second inning that swung Miami's win probability from 32% to 13%, and the Mets never looked back. New York rolled to a 7-5 final, with three different Mets going deep in a game that was effectively over before the fourth inning.

The Mets came out swinging from the jump. Francisco Lindor opened the scoring with a 405-foot solo shot to center in the first, and Jared Young followed with an RBI single that pushed it to 2-0 before Miami could blink. Then came the moment that defined the night: Soto's 417-foot three-run bomb to center in the second, scoring Alvarez and Lindor and making it 5-0. Miami's win probability cratered from 32% to 13% on that single swing. Brett Baty added a 426-foot solo shot in the third to push it to 6-0, and a Baty sacrifice fly in the fifth capped the New York scoring at 7. The Mets put up seven runs across five innings against a Miami starter who, on paper, was dealing — Dax Fulton threw three hitless innings with four strikeouts. The damage was done entirely in relief, which looks like a significant bullpen failure for the Marlins.

Sean Manaea took the ball for New York and was functional without being dominant — 5.0 innings, 5 hits, 4 earned runs, 4 strikeouts, no walks. Miami's offense woke up in the sixth, turning a 7-0 deficit into something resembling a game. Serna doubled to score Marsee, Navarreto doubled to score Serna, Lopez singled to score Navarreto, and then a throwing error by center fielder Ewing allowed Lopez to score on a Sanoja single, making it 7-4 in a hurry. Four runs in one inning off Manaea and the New York bullpen is a real number, and the Marlins appeared to find something late — but it was far too little, far too late. Nate Lavender came on and held the line with two strikeouts over a scoreless inning, and Dedniel Nunez followed with a clean frame of his own.

Miami's Jakob Marsee went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, and Jared Serna added a 2-for-3 line with an RBI — both players gave the Marlins something to build on offensively. But the story of the night was the Mets' top of the order doing whatever it wanted in the early innings. Soto finished 2-for-4 with a homer, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored. Lindor went 1-for-4 with a homer, an RBI, and 2 runs. Baty contributed 1-for-3 with a homer, 2 RBI, and a sacrifice fly. Three home runs, all to center field, all in the first three innings — that's a performance that appears to signal New York's lineup operating at a different level than what Miami's pitching staff could handle on this Tuesday night.