Some time ago, <a href="https://bolavip.com/en/topic/juan-soto">Juan Soto</a>’s move from the New York Yankees to the Mets was a major headline, putting the spotlight squarely on what the Dominican star would do next in Queens. However, his early days with the team proved more challenging than expected.



Although he ultimately put together an outstanding season statistically, Soto admitted that he struggled to find his footing early on, and a former MLB star with a similar Mets background played a key role in helping him through it: Carlos Beltran.



“He shared that the same thing happened to him once when he was really struggling in New York,” Soto said during an interview on Siendo Honestos with Katherine Hernandez, as translated by The Post. “Everyone was piling on and the pressure was intense. To get through it, he started carrying a card with all his stats written on it.



“Every time he looked at it, he reminded himself: this is who I am as a player, not the version everyone else is trying to paint. That simple mental reset helped him break out of the slump.”



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><figure class="image"><img loading="lazy" width="1920" height="1080" src="https://ds-images.bolavip.com/news/image?src=https://images.bolavip.com/webp/en/full/BUS_20251231_BUS_554450_carlos-beltran_aeeb87ee.webp&amp;width=1920&amp;height=1080" alt="Carlos Beltran" class="wp-image-554469"></figure><figcaption> Carlos Beltran talks after being introduced as manager of the New York Mets.</figcaption></figure>



<h2>Soto regained his form</h2>



Juan Soto’s debut season with the <a href="https://bolavip.com/en/topic/new-york-mets">New York Mets</a> was a tale of two halves, proving why he was worth every penny of his historic 15-year, $765 million contract. After bolting from the Bronx to Queens, the four-time All-Star initially struggled to find his rhythm, battling a slow start that saw him hitting just .241 with three home runs and 12 RBIs through the end of April.


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However, as the weather warmed, so did Soto’s bat; he silenced restless fans at Citi Field by putting together a monster campaign that saw him set new career highs with 43 home runs and 38 stolen bases. His remarkable recovery led him to a third-place finish in the National League MVP race, as he anchored the Mets’ lineup and solidified his status as one of the premier offensive forces in baseball.







<h2>Beltran’s legacy in Queens</h2>



<a href="https://bolavip.com/en/topic/carlos-beltran">Carlos Beltran</a>‘s legacy with the Mets serves as a powerful reminder that elite talent often requires time to adjust to the bright lights of New York. Despite earning an All-Star nod in 2005, his debut season was marred by career lows and a traumatic on-field collision that hindered his production. 



However, Beltran silenced his critics the following year by launching an elite three-year stretch where he averaged 33 home runs and 113 RBIs while securing three consecutive Gold Gloves, ultimately cementing his status as one of the greatest all-around players in franchise history.

NY Mets News: Juan Soto reveals who helped him overcome slow start after NY Yankees exit

NY Mets News: Juan Soto reveals who helped him overcome slow start after NY Yankees exit - Bolavip US

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The 2017 <a href="https://bolavip.com/en/mlb/mlb-2022-top-5-projected-rotations-for-the-upcoming-regular-season-20220402-0023.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Houston Astros</a> will forever go down as one of the <a href="https://bolavip.com/en/sports/The-30-worst-cheaters-in-sports-history-20200605-0001.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">biggest cheaters</a> in sports history. They developed an intricate sign-stealing system that helped them win the <a href="https://bolavip.com/en/mlb/mattress-mack-loses-35-million-bet-over-world-series-loss-20211103-0005.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Series</a> with little-to-no trouble.
Some argue that it’s a part of the game and that other teams should be to blame for allowing their signs to be stolen. Others state that it’s one thing to come up with your rivals’ signs and another to use technology to steal from them.
Wherever you stand, you can only agree that <a href="https://bolavip.com/en/mlb/houston-astros-in-mlb-world-series-championships-and-appearances-20211027-0007.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the World Series title</a> will always carry an asterisk next to it. If not, just ask Carlos Beltran, one of the biggest names involved in this scandal.
<h2>MLB News: Carlos Beltran Admits 2017 World Series Title Is ‘Stained’</h2>
“Looking back now, yes, we did cross the line,” Beltran told Michael Kay.“Yeah, there is (a stain) because, you know what we did. And we all have taken responsibility and at some point we all have shown remorse about what we did.”
“We all did what we did,” the 9-time All-Star continued. “Looking back today, we were wrong. I wish I would’ve asked more questions about what we were doing. I wish the organization would’ve said to us, ‘Hey man, what you guys are doing, we need to stop this.’”
“Nobody really said anything,” Beltran said. “We’re winning, you know, and some days our system really worked. Some days [it] didn’t really work … but we had a good team … we had such a good team.”
 
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<h2>Astros Thought Other Teams Were Stealing Signs From Them</h2>
Beltran was pointed out as the mastermind behind the sign-stealing scheme. However, he claims that the initiative came from several players who thought other teams were doing the same against them:
“(Some players) felt that when teams are coming to our ballpark [Minute Maid Park], we felt that some teams have something going on,” Beltran admitted. “So we felt that we needed to create our own [system], you know, and that’s what happened.”
“We’re seeing the game … you get to see the pitchers, you get to see the catchers,” Beltran explained. “And then we felt that we could use that, you know, but we didn’t feel that we were really crossing the line there. We didn’t feel we were really crossing the line. We felt in our hearts that we were being more efficient and smarter than any team out there.”
<h2>The Front Office Never Tried To Stop Them</h2>
Moreover, Beltran claims that, even though the Astros front office was well aware of the practice and how it broke Major League Baseball’s policy, they never even tried to stop the players from doing it:
“If they [the Astros front office] got the letter [from MLB], they knew, but they never shared it with us,” Beltran said. “Nobody said anything to us, you know, nobody said anything. I wish somebody would’ve said something. A lot of people always ask me why you didn’t stop it. And my answer is, ‘I didn’t stop it the same way no one stopped it.’ This is working for us. Why you gonna stop something that is working for you? So, if the organization would’ve said something to us, we would’ve stopped it for sure.”
At the end of the day, it’s not like the Astros needed to cheat to win, as they had one of the most stacked teams in recent memory.

Carlos Beltran gets brutally honest on the Astros' cheating scandal

Carlos Beltran gets brutally honest on the Astros' cheating scandal - Bolavip US

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