With the recent finalization of the NBA finals, and the New York Knicks being crowned champions for the first time in over 50 years, naturally, New York Mets’ Juan Soto was bound to be tied to the New York side of things. This time, it’s in a comparison to Spurs‘ superstar Victor Wembanyama.
Jalen Brunson, the Knicks’ captain, was “born to play basketball.” He put the exclamation point on that claim by proving his doubters wrong and icing game five with a 45-point performance.
However, there are always two sides to a championship coin, and the opposing force in this series was Victor Wembanyama, a 22-year-old.
‘Wemby’ led his team past the defending champs, but couldn’t put the finishing touches on the run. Soto finished the job–and he did it two years earlier.
Soto Dominated The Playoffs at Age 20, Like Victor Wembanyama Couldn’t
In a recent Instagram post on @bigleagueanalysis, he pointed out how Soto’s run in 2019 mirrors Wembanyama’s this year–except it’s better.
“Wembanyama and the Spurs NBA Finals collapse has me thinking about Juan Soto’s greatness,” he said.
Soto, now with the Mets, once led the Washington Nationals to their first World Series as a 20-year-old.
That sounds crazy when you say it, but it gets even crazier when you examine it.
In 17 games, Soto slashed .277/.373/.554. Good for an OPS of .924. He also smacked five home runs, the most memorable being his bat drop bomb in Houston.
When you see that slashline, it looks good–but not historical. Then, something clicks. The OBP is astounding.
Soto, as a baby-faced big leaguer, got on base at the same clip he’s amounted in regular-season play. To put on a show of such rigorous discipline on the world’s biggest baseball stage is utterly ridiculous.
A lot of postseason legends catch lightning in a bottle. Suddenly, they can’t strike out, flyballs hit jet streams and turn into home runs, and every ball hit their way turns into an out. To put it simply: they get hot at the right time. Soto didn’t do that. He didn’t catch on fire and come back down to Earth, like David Freese or Randy Arozarena (both great players); he showed the caliber of player he truly is: one of the greatest of all time.
This season, Soto might miss the playoffs, but it’s anything other than his fault–and the fans know it.
Social Media Reacts to Soto’s All-Star Caliber Season
Here’s what people are saying about Soto:
MLB Network: “Is Juan Soto the greatest hitter of all time, to this point in his career?”
SNY Mets: “The moment a young fan gifted Juan Soto the Spider-Man mask he made in Seattle, the Mets are now using the mask as their home run celebration (via homerunhitter_05/IG).”
Fireside Mets: “Juan Soto looked LOCKED IN against Atlanta Over the 3-game series: 6-for-10, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3 BB, 0 K. THIS is the version of Soto that can completely change the energy of this #Mets lineup #LGM #LFGM.”
Joe Danneman: “Some serious star power at the cage at Great American Ball Park. Elly De La Cruz and Juan Soto are catching up before the Reds and Mets tonight.”
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