The Mets are having a brutal season. But if you look past the losses and the trade rumors, two guys are making it worth watching: Juan Soto and Luke Weaver.
Soto has seen Weaver do this before. They were teammates in New York last year, and Soto watched Weaver turn into a reliable arm out of the bullpen for the Yankees. So when he sees Weaver roll through hitters for the Mets this season, it’s not a surprise anymore. It’s just what Weaver does.
“It doesn’t impress me anymore,” Soto told SNY. “He’s just doing that every year, every time. 2024 we had a great run and he was showing it day in and day out. I followed a little bit of what he did last year. This year he’s unbelievable. Definitely an All-Star.”
That’s high praise from one of the best hitters in baseball. And the numbers back it up.
Weaver’s Numbers Tell the Real Story
Through his first 36 appearances this season, Weaver has a 1.89 ERA. He’s struck out 42 batters against 11 walks. And here’s the wild part: he hasn’t allowed an earned run since April. That’s not just good. That’s borderline ridiculous for a reliever on a team that’s been losing more than winning.
Last season with the Yankees, Weaver posted a 3.62 ERA with a 72-to-20 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The guy just keeps getting better. Over his 11-year MLB career, his ERA sits at 4.60, but that number is misleading. Once he moved to the bullpen full-time, everything clicked. He’s been a different pitcher.
The Mets knew what they were getting when they signed him. But he’s been even better than advertised.
Will They Stay Teammates?
Here’s where it gets complicated. The Mets are expected to be sellers at the trade deadline, and Weaver’s name is going to come up a lot. He’s exactly the kind of reliever a contender wants: consistent, battle-tested, and on a reasonable deal. A team looking to shore up its bullpen for a playoff push could easily call about him.
Soto, for what it’s worth, isn’t getting ahead of himself. He knows how the business works. But he also knows what Weaver brings to a clubhouse. “Regardless of what team he’s on, I know what he can do,” Soto said. “He’s showing it every time he goes out there.”
So maybe they’ll stay Mets together. Or maybe Weaver gets dealt to a contender and Soto watches from afar, already knowing exactly what that team is getting.
Either way, Weaver has made himself indispensable. And Soto stopped being surprised a long time ago.
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