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New York Mets<\/a>\u00a0president of baseball operations\u00a0<\/span>David Stearns<\/a> has become a public enemy in the eyes of many Mets fans due to the controversial\u00a0<\/span>decisions<\/span><\/a>\u00a0he made during the offseason while assembling a roster that went 35-49 across the first 84 games of the 2026\u00a0<\/span>season<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Meanwhile,\u00a0<\/span>Eric Chavez<\/span><\/a>\u00a0previously\u00a0<\/span><\/span>held<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0different coaching roles with the Mets from 2022 up until he was\u00a0<\/span><\/span>dismissed<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0by the club this past October. During the latest edition of his podcast, Chavez shared some concerning takes about Stearns and about how star outfielder\u00a0<\/span>Juan Soto<\/a>\u00a0handled his first season with the Mets.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Soto featured for the\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>New York Yankees<\/a> during the 2024 campaign before\u00a0he signed a 15-year, $765M contract to join the Mets in December of that year.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n “He struggled the first two months emotionally,” Chavez said about Soto, per<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0Joe Pantorno<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0of amNewYork. “I don\u2019t blame him, a big move going from the Yankees. Maybe had a little bit of buyer\u2019s remorse. In between innings, he would run from the outfield and go sit in the batting cage on the couch, and not be in the dugout with teammates. This isn\u2019t a Juan issue. This is a lack of leadership, a lack of accountability from the top down. And we had an assistant GM who would sit there with him\u2026and kind of coddle him, tap him on the shoulder, without saying, ‘Hey dude, how about getting in the dugout with your teammates?'”\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Stories about Soto’s alleged\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>unhappiness<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> while with the Mets routinely generated headlines throughout the spring of 2025. After the Mets endured a brutal collapse last year en route to missing the playoffs, rumors surfaced<\/a> claiming that the team was impacted by alleged clubhouse issues throughout the second half of the season.\u00a0<\/p>\n For what it is worth, a report<\/a> from earlier in June indicated that Soto has served as a strong and outspoken leader for the Mets amid their numerous struggles this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n According to Pantorno, Chavez said on the podcast that he spoke with Stearns about Soto possibly setting a bad example for younger players last year.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n “Well, those players need to learn that they\u2019re not Juan Soto,” Stearns allegedly responded.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Chavez added that “this is not a backbone type of leader from a GM, because it trickles down.”\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Of course, Mets fans largely wouldn’t care about Chavez’s comments if the team were even slightly decent heading into July. The Mets are instead a last-place club that fired manager\u00a0<\/span>Carlos Mendoza<\/a> on June 26, so Chavez’s words may pour more fuel onto the figurative fire for New York supporters who want\u00a0team owner\u00a0<\/span>Steve Cohen<\/a> to show Stearns the door sooner rather than later.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nJuan Soto “struggled the first two months emotionally” after joining Mets<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n
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How David Stearns allegedly reacted when told of Juan Soto concerns\u00a0<\/h2>\n