Juan Soto’s “huge” home run after fouling the ball on his feet gives the Yankees’ dormant offense a boost

Another game, another new Yankees moment for Juan Sotoand Wednesday’s performance may be the most impressive this season.

The Yankees were down 0-1 and were dominated by starters Cole Ragan’s For five innings, Soto came to bat with one man on base and one out. Soto fouled a 2-2 slider with the top of his foot and under his shin guard. The ball flew a few feet up the free throw line and the Yankees outfielder fell to the ground in obvious pain.

The head coach of the Yankees and Aaron Boone came out to check on their superstar, but after a few moments, Soto composed himself to end the batting session.

Two pitches later, Soto sent Ragan’s curveball 402 feet over the right field wall, giving the Yankees a 2-1 lead.

“Huge swing from Juan. A little rope-a-dope. He got up off the mat and put one on the seats,” Boone said after the game. “Just a huge swing where Ragans did what he wanted to us.”

The moment was a wake-up call for a team that hadn’t won a game the night before, whose offense had scored just six runs in its last three games other than Monday’s 10-run firewall, and who were in danger of losing a series and possibly their lead in the AL East standings.

Instead, the explosion seemed to revitalize the dugout, allowing the Yankees to tie the game after the Royals took a late lead and finally secure the walk-off victory in Wednesday’s 4-3 thriller in 11 innings, thanks to Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s infield single, which Jon Berti.

Chisholm, the Yankees’ biggest addition at the trade deadline, is starting to feel the playoff atmosphere in the Bronx, and Soto’s batting performance was a harbinger of that experience.

“When you saw him stand up and look around, you could see in his eyes that he was about to do something special,” he said.

Boone said, “(Soto) has that theatricality down pretty well.”

Soto’s home run was his career-high 39th home run of the season, but also perhaps one of his most emotional, as the left-hander threw his bat and roared toward his dugout.

“It’s part of the game. You get really mad when you hit yourself. Not mad at the pitcher, I’m just mad at myself,” Soto explained. “When you get through like that, it feels like a little relief.”

While the end result was a moment that will be told in 2024 Yankees history, it could have been worse. Boone said he was worried Soto wouldn’t be able to finish the game, but the outfielder pulled himself together and made a great at-bat. In fact, he believes the foul ball helped him.

“It hurt a lot. Ultimately, I try to focus on the shot,” Soto said. “Sometimes when you hit yourself like that, you let the shot go. I tried to focus, take my time and go in there and make good contact.”

With the Yankees’ win and the Orioles’ loss, New York is now 1.5 games ahead of the AL East standings. And while Soto’s one-legged hit wasn’t the deciding moment, it gave a team that desperately needed some momentum.

They will look to keep the momentum going when they host the Boston Red Sox for four games at the Stadium starting Thursday.