Juan Soto homers for Team Dominican Republic as WBC exhibition games begin

The World Baseball Classic teams have assembled and Juan Soto is already putting on a power display for Team Dominican Republic.

On the first day of WBC exhibition games, Soto gave the home crowd plenty to cheer for. The Mets slugger took four at-bats and finished 2-for-4, but it was his fourth-inning two-run blast that put Team DR ahead of the Tigers after Detroit got out to a 3-0 lead. The blast went 431 feet and 107.3 off the bat. Soto finished his night driving in a run on a single.

Juan Soto blasts one! pic.twitter.com/3Q1gkFrzr5

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 4, 2026

In the same game, Mets reliever Huascar Brazoban pitched for the Dominican Republic. The right-hander struck out the two batters he faced in the ninth inning, tossing nine pitches (six strikes), to help DR lock down the 12-4 win.

The Mets have 17 players -- ranging from major leaguers to prospects -- participating in the 2026 WBC, but Soto is the most high-profile name playing. The various teams are set to play one more exhibition game before the tournament begins from March 5-17.

Here's how other notable Mets players in the WBC fared in Tuesday's exhibition games...

Team Nicaragua vs. Mets

Mark Vientos faced his teammates on Tuesday. In three at-bats, Vientos went 1-for-3 with a strikeout in the Mets' 6-3 win. 

Team Italy vs. Cubs

Nck Morabito, No. 11 in Joe DeMayo's updated top 30 prospects in the Mets' system, came off the bench and went 1-for-1 with a walk and a run scored. 

Team Canada vs. Blue Jays

Jared Young came off the bench, replacing Josh Naylor, for our neighbors in the North, and went 1-for-1 with a sacrifice fly.