Juan Soto exits the game after fouling a ball off his left foot; X-rays are negative

SAN DIEGO — Dominican outfielder Juan Soto left Tuesday night’s game between the Mets and the Padres after hitting his left foot with a foul ball. After an initial evaluation, the team reported that it is a contusion and that the X-rays were negative. Soto remains under the day-to-day label and no fractures were detected.

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The incident occurred during the fourth inning, when Soto hit the base of his left foot with a foul ball that he himself hit. Visibly in pain, he fell to his knees on the field, where he was attended to by the team’s medical staff, headed by athletic trainer Joe Golia. Although he briefly returned to the plate and finished his at-bat with a groundout after three pitches, he did not return to the field for the bottom of the inning.

The Mets announced that Juan Soto left tonight's game with a foot contusion

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In his absence, Jeff McNeil moved to right field and Tyrone Taylor entered center field. At the time of his departure, Soto maintains an offensive line of .248/.382/.488 with 25 home runs in 107 games. This is his first season under the 15-year, $765 million megacontract he signed with the Mets. The New York team is optimistic about the star outfielder’s recovery, although the medical staff is expected to continue monitoring his progress in the coming days.