Juan Soto's first season with the New York Mets has been an adventure. The Mets season has also been a bit of a rollercoaster ride. After Soto, 26, signed his massive 15-year, $765 million deal with the Mets,

On the very next pitch, Soto made it a party. The slugger crushed a solo shot to center, giving the Mets back-to-back homers and a 6-4 lead. The stadium erupted, believing the Mets might finally be snapping out of their funk.

The New York Mets suffered a 4-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves at Citi Field on Thursday, extending their slump in dramatic fashion. Once the hottest team in the National League, the Mets have now dropped nine of their last 10 games—a skid that has erased their once-comfortable advantage in the standings.

The Mets have lost 13 of their last 15 games and their lead over the idle Cincinnati Reds in the race for the final wild-card spot shrunk to a half-game. Francisco Lindor hit a third-inning solo homer and Brandon Nimmo (sacrifice fly) and Pete Alonso (single) had back-to-back RBIs to give the Mets a 3-2 lead in the sixth.

After a 12th defeat in 14 games, the Mets' lead on a playoff spot is down to a single game over the Cincinnati Reds.

The Mets’ offense gets a chance to wake up on Wednesday against a familiar face. Carlos Carrasco, who spent three years in Queens from 2021-23, will take the mound for the Braves amid perhaps the worst season of his 16-year big league career.

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