Mets Soto day-to-day after fouling ball off foot

New York Mets designated hitter Juan Soto left Wednesday night's game against the Detroit Tigers after fouling a ball off his right foot in the third inning, but X-rays came back negative and he is listed as day-to-day.

The injury occurred on the 2-0 pitch when Soto hopped toward the dugout and dropped to one knee. An athletic trainer and manager Carlos Mendoza attended to him before Soto returned to strike out in that at-bat. He grounded out in the sixth inning but was replaced by pinch hitter M.J. Melendez in the seventh, with a runner on third base after a tying single.

Mendoza expressed initial concern after the game in the Mets' 3-2 victory. "We got good news there, he's day-to-day," he said. "See how he comes tomorrow, whether he's a player for us in the starting lineup." He added, "I was concerned as soon as he got hit, because it got him pretty good. You could tell that he was in pain. And then just that next at-bat, he didn't look right."

Soto went 0-for-3 in the game and is batting 6-for-41 this month. Overall, he is hitting .263 with four home runs and 11 RBIs. The four-time All-Star missed 15 games last month due to a strained right calf.