Juan Soto snaps 17-game home run drought in Mets' win

NEW YORK (AP) — Juan Soto snapped a 17-game home run drought with a 404-foot homer to left-centerfield in the fourth inning of the New York Mets’ 8-2 win Saturday over the Colorado Rockies.

Soto’s first homer since May 9 was clocked at 109.5 mph off the bat but hit into a 14 mph wind blowing out to right field.

“He put a really good swing on it,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “For him to hit it out of the ballpark like that on a day that the conditions are not in his favor, that’s pretty impressive.”

Asked if he was confident the ball would leave the yard, Soto grinned.

“I mean, 110 (mph), you’ve got to be,” Soto said. “I knew it was gone.”

The home run drought was the fourth-longest of the outfielder's eight-year career. Soto, who signed a record $765 million, 15-year deal in December, entered Saturday hitting just .143 with two extra-base hits in his previous 17 games.

But the reception at Citi Field has remained mostly warm for Soto, who raised his hands to the cheering crowd following his home run trot. He was serenaded with chants of “JUAN SO-TO” from fans in the right field seats in the top of the fifth, when he turned and raised his arms in acknowledgment.

“It’s a great feeling when you feel the support like that,” Soto said.

Soto homered one pitch after Brandon Nimmo hit a two-run shot to right.

“Francisco (Lindor) and I were doing our picture down there,” Nimmo said, referring to the Mets’ post-home run tradition of posing in the dugout. “Heard the sound of the bat and the crowd going wild. We looked out and were able to see him go the other way. That’s when he’s the best.

“I think weather’s starting to heat up, we’re flipping the script into June, this field will start to play a little more fair. I think it’s just a sign of good things to come. Great to go back-to-back with him.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb

New York Mets' Juan Soto celebrates with teammates after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies Saturday, May 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Mets' Juan Soto gestures to the crowd as he runs the bases after hitting a home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies Saturday, May 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A man handed an illegal prison sentence years longer than the maximum penalty for his crime has been granted clemency by Mississippi's governor, weeks after the man's brother received clemency in a similar case.

Gov. Tate Reeves announced Wednesday that he was granting clemency to Maurice Taylor. The man's brother, Marcus Taylor, received clemency earlier this month from the governor for another illegal sentence.

In February 2015, both brothers accepted plea bargains and pled guilty to conspiracy to sell a Schedule III substance.

At the time, the maximum penalty for conspiracy to sell a Schedule III substance was five years. Yet Maurice Taylor was sentenced to 20 years in prison with five years suspended, and Marcus Taylor to 15 years.

“Like his brother, Maurice Taylor received a sentence more than three times longer than allowed under Mississippi law,” Reeves wrote in his announcement. “When justice is denied to even one Mississippian, it is denied to us all.”

In May, the Mississippi Court of Appeals had ruled that Marcus Taylor’s sentence was illegal, but did not commute his sentence because Taylor had missed the deadline to apply for post-conviction relief. After rehearing that case in November, the court reversed course and ordered his release.

In Wednesday's order, Reeves wrote that Maurice Taylor's post-conviction counsel contacted his office for the first time a few weeks ago, providing legal documents in his case. Maurice Taylor must be released within five days, according to Reeves’ order.

The Associated Press was not immediately able to identify and contact Maurice Taylor's post-conviction counsel.

The brothers are the only people to receive clemency from Reeves.

FILE - Republican Gov. Tate Reeves responds to a reporter's question during a news conference Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)