Mets vs. Yankees: Juan Soto makes his return to the Bronx in this weekend’s Subway Series

Juan Soto spent 329 days as a New York Yankee.

That stretch — from Dec. 6, 2023, to Oct. 30, 2024 — played out almost perfectly. During his lone year in pinstripes, Soto was a force, a sensation, supposedly the main character in Year 1 of a burgeoning love story. Hitting ahead of Aaron Judge, the swashbuckling Dominican delivered 41 homers and a .419 on-base percentage. In October, Soto was even better, with a 1.101 OPS to go with four long balls, including one in Game 5 of the ALCS that sent the Yankees to their first Fall Classic in 15 years.

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None of that matters now.

That’s because Soto, the free agent, chose Queens over the Bronx, the Mets over the Yankees, money over glory (at least, according to those in the right-field bleachers). In signing a $765 million contract with the Mets, the largest in professional sports history, Soto simultaneously made himself public enemy No. 1 on the other side of town. Not that he cares; sports villainy is a worthwhile price to pay.

Given the stakes, the financials, this city and its thirst for drama, the Soto fallout has been relatively mundane. The spiciest moment was only parmesan garlic on the Buffalo Wild Wings scale. Soto said he signed with the Mets, in part, because he thought Cohen’s team was better situated to win a World Series in the near future. Judge, when asked about the comment, was predictably diplomatic, throwing water on the embers. But this weekend, with all the characters back on 161st Street, should up the entertainment value some.

Even without any Soto drama, this weekend’s Subway Series would be compelling: Two first-place teams with massive expectations facing off for the first time in 2025. But the return of the $765 million man to his former workplace should take things to another level. This will be Soto experiencing a glimpse of what might’ve been, a brief taste of an alternate timeline.

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Each time Soto strolls to the dish, a cacophony of boos can be expected to rain down upon his head. At some point, he will strike out, and Yankee Stadium will erupt with glee. At some point, too, he will draw a walk and do so flamboyantly, with swagger, scowling, teasing, and Yankee Stadium will get silent and then boo again. If he goes yard, the place will sound like a library — that is, except for the Mets fans who made the crosstown trek.

No matter what happens, it’ll be sensational theater. But don’t expect Soto to be fazed by any of it. That’s how he has always operated, cool, calm, unperturbed. Presumably that’s why the Mets gave him all that money.

Here’s what else to watch in the upcoming Subway Series.

Who’s pitching?

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The schedule gods were kind to the Yankees, who have their three best starters lined up. But don’t sleep on the Mets’ rotation. The unit entered this season surrounded by a maelstrom of doubt but has continued to outperform expectations at every turn. Their 2.84 team ERA leads MLB.

Let’s start with Rodón, who’s enjoying a bounce-back 2025. Among American League starters, the big ol’ southpaw has the lowest batting average against and ranks second in strikeouts per nine innings. What’s behind the improvement? A huge spike in his ground-ball rate against right-handed hitters (23.4% in ‘24 to 34.1% in ‘25). More worm-burners equals fewer extra-base hits. Rodón added a sinker to his mix in spring training, but he doesn’t throw it much to righties. Instead, more four-seamers down in the zone are propelling the Rodón renaissance. He’ll go up against Megill, a massive human with elite extension down the mound who has filled in admirably for the injured Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas Jr.

Canning, who signed for only $4.25 million last winter, has been the latest Mets pitching development revelation. The spindly 29-year-old righty is throwing his best offering (a slider) way more to great effect, particularly against lefties. His 2.36 ERA is tied for sixth in the NL. Schmidt has made only five starts this year after a lat issue delayed his season, but he has looked like himself in his past three outings.

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The Yankees have the big advantage on Sunday. Fried, the crown jewel of the club’s “Soto Pivot,” has been sensational in 2025. The gangly southpaw has a 1.11 ERA, far and away the lowest in baseball. Meanwhile, Peterson, also a lefty, has his work cut out for him against the Bombers’ lineup, as the Yankees boast baseball’s best OPS against left-handed hurlers.

Can the Mets quiet Aaron Judge?

The best hitter on planet Earth against the game’s most effective pitching staff should be a real treat. Here are a few of the categories in which Judge leads the American League: home runs, runs, RBI, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, wins above replacement. And while Judge was 12-for-25 with three taters on New York’s recent road trip, it undersells his greatness to call that a hot stretch. He’s always that good.

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To keep Judge down, the Mets will need to walk the ever-dangerous line of attacking him with sliders away. When Judge is super locked in, he’s able to take the breakers just off the edge while clobbering the ones that catch the zone to the opposite field. In their matchups last year, the Mets attacked Judge up in the zone with fastballs early and then used soft stuff late in counts. That strategy didn’t work; Judge went 4-for-9 with two homers and six walks against his crosstown rivals last year.

One thing to keep an eye on: Judge has always struggled the most against splitters. The two Mets who throw splitters are righty relievers Reed Garrett and Ryne Stanek. Expect that tandem to be matched up against Judge late in games but before the ninth inning, when the duty will belong to closer Edwin Díaz.

Whose city?

Part of Steve Cohen’s ploy when he bought his boyhood team was to upgrade the Mets into a premier global brand. The goal: one of the best run and most successful organizations in sports, not just baseball. A top-100 richest person in the world doesn’t do half-measures, as Cohen evidenced by handing Soto and Francisco Lindor and all those other well-paid ballplayers all that cabbage. But before Cohen and his Mets can take over the world, they need to chip away at New York.

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When it comes to baseball, the Yankees have always run the Big Apple. Twenty-seven World Series titles and a laundry list of baseball greats will do that. The cultural impact of the navy cap with the interlocking NY cannot be topped. But the Mets, to their credit, are trying.

The Queens club took all four games from the Yankees last year, a feather in the cap of what was an unforgettable season. If the Mets can somehow sweep again — it’s six games this year — that would mark another small step toward their ultimate goal. One that, given the Yankees’ supreme status, will take decades to accomplish.

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