NEW YORK — Juan Soto stood at home plate silently and looked upwards toward Yankee Stadium’s right field second deck. Chaos surrounded Soto but he was still, only for a brief second. He slammed his bat on the ground, pounded his chest and screamed toward the Yankees dugout after belting a three-run home run in the seventh inning, helping the New Yankees move to 14-6 on the season.
It’s fitting how Soto’s walk-up song is Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” because watching the right fielder admire his 409-foot towering shot run felt like observing King Kong climb the Empire State Building, looking out over New York City as if all of the land was his. Through 20 games, every stadium has felt like Soto’s kingdom.
“He’s just a special player,” Yankees starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt said. “I guess sign the dotted line however much he wants.”
Madness. pic.twitter.com/RnCOmhQx2P
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 20, 2024
Schmidt was speaking for every single Yankees fan around the world who can’t help but imagine the generational talent in pinstripes for the rest of his career. With every big moment, it feels like Soto’s price tag for his upcoming free agency is only getting higher. He’s hitting .563/.636/1.188 (9-for-16) with one double, three home runs, 17 RBIs and five walks with runners in scoring position. After the inning ended and Soto ran out to right field, he was greeted by fans chanting “MVP! MVP! MVP!” It’s April 19.
“I think it’s way too early,” Soto laughed. “It feels great. They just support me every day, day in and day out. It just feels amazing.”
Soto did not feel like an MVP candidate at the end of spring training. He ended spring in a 5-for-28 slide. He was so down on his swing that he decided against traveling with the team to Mexico City for two exhibition games. Soto was originally slated to attend and was thrilled about the possibility of putting on a show at the friendliest ballpark for hitters, but he wasn’t in the friendliest mood by the time the team needed to solidify its plans.
“If you saw all of my at-bats in the last quarter of spring training, I had some really bad swings,” Soto told The Athletic before Friday’s game. “I was pulling off of the ball. I thought it was a simple thing to fix but I needed to rise my game to get to where I’m at today. I can’t explain what I did because if I tell you, other teams read your stuff. I don’t want to reveal all of my stuff but I worked with (hitting coach James Rowson) before he left and worked out a little bit down (in Tampa) with my swing. It worked.”
Rowson said Soto felt like he needed to work on perfecting getting his bat through the strike zone and maximizing his contact points. Soto also felt like he was lacking his usual explosiveness near the end of spring training. So while Giancarlo Stanton was in Mexico City taking batting practice in a luchador mask and reveling in the Mexican culture, Soto was at the Yankees’ spring training facility poring over the finest details of his swing. Soto said his swing right now is where he wants it to be. He’s in the middle of the best start of any season he’s had.
“As the season has progressed, he’s closer and closer to that point he wants to be, which is scary to think because he is dominating the ball and he wasn’t feeling as great as this,” Rowson said. “It’s still a work in progress, but obviously he’s one of the best in the game.
“This guy is arguably one of the best hitters I’ve ever coached. Without a doubt, seeing this live in person every day, I knew it was gonna be good but it’s even better than I thought it was going to be.”
Even with Yankees captain Aaron Judge not performing to his usual standard, the team finds itself in first place in the American League East. A large reason for that is Soto’s production, not only at the plate but also in the field. In Friday’s game, Soto robbed Tampa Bay Rays left fielder Richie Palacios of extra bases by making a leaping grab at the wall. Soto’s rep as a defender before joining the Yankees was poor; he finished in the third percentile in outs above average last season with the San Diego Padres, but he’s been one of the better defending right fielders in MLB.
Anyway, here’s Juan-derwall. pic.twitter.com/cl0GBduxNq
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 19, 2024
More than in any offseason before, Soto worked on getting better defensively with the help of former MLB outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. and current Yankees outfield coach Luis Rojas. He said coming over to the American League where he doesn’t know the tendencies of hitters like he did in the National League inspired him to focus on that aspect of his game.
“This guy cares about not just hitting; this guy cares about being really good at all of the other little things of the game: base running, defense,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “He works on a lot of little things behind the scenes. He takes care of his body. He’s all invested in a baseball player. That’s what’s been impressive to witness.”
It’s Soto’s bat, though, that will lead to him getting handsomely paid this offseason. The Athletic’s Tim Britton projected a 15-year, $575 million contract for Soto. Whatever the number ends up being, it may reach a point, like it did with Aaron Judge in 2022, where Hal Steinbrenner has no choice but to give into agent Scott Boras’ demands and sign Soto for life.
Soto said he “doesn’t feel” like this is the best version of himself that he’s seen. If it’s not, imagine the roars you’ll hear at Yankee Stadium for the next six months.
“I think it was a playoff atmosphere,” Schmidt said of the crowd Friday night. “A lot of guys have been saying that with how loud it’s been. I think a lot of credit goes to him, too. He lights a fire in the crowd. I know there’s a lot of representation from the Dominican (community). It’s fun to see and a very fun atmosphere. A big credit to him.”
(Photo of Juan Soto: Mike Stobe / Getty Images)
