New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto was a late addition to the team's lineup for Sunday's 8-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays after sitting out of Saturday's loss because of a bruised right hand.
Juan Soto was expected to get testing done on the hand on Monday when the Yankees arrived back to New York, but it was determined that he was good enough to play. He then went 1-for-3 with two walks and a run batted in. It is a sign of relief for the Yankees to get Soto back in the lineup and split the four-game series with the Blue Jays.
During Friday's 16-5 Yankees win, Soto hurt his hand sliding home. That is where the concerns started, but with the late addition to the lineup, Aaron Judge went from playing right field to being the designated hitter with Soto taking his spot. Judge homered in the first inning off of Kevin Gausman to make it 2-0 Yankees, and they never looked back from there. It was Aaron Judge's 31st home run on the season and 288th of his career, moving him ahead of Bernie Williams for seventh on the Yankees' all-time home run list.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone spoke on what led to the decision to insert Soto into the lineup late.
“Pretty significant improvement from where he was yesterday with the treatment he was able to get,” Aaron Boone said, via ESPN.
As far as why Soto sat on Saturday, he said he felt pain in batting practice and that caused him to alter his swing.
“I don't want him compromising anything or changing his swing,” Boone said, via ESPN. “If there's any of that, we'll wait.”
Soto did have X-rays on Saturday that did not show a fracture. Now, he will have a chance to rest that hand on Monday as the Yankees are off before starting a series against the Cincinnati Reds at home on Tuesday.
Yankees end June on high note, turn attention to trade deadline
With the win over the Blue Jays on Sunday, the Yankees finished June with a 14-13 record, which is a bit better than many might think with how the team has played over the last two weeks or so since a series loss on the road against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.
June was on paper always going to be one of, if not the toughest month for the Yankees. There were a lot of games against quality competition, and this month exposed some of the flaws that Brian Cashman will have to address at the trade deadline at the end of July.
The Yankees need help in the bullpen, which is something that has been apparent even since they were playing well. Specifically, they need a left-handed pitcher and in general, pitchers who get strikeouts. The corner infield spots are needs as well, but DJ LeMahieu and Ben Rice's performances will be taken into account as well.
For now, the Yankees are happy Soto seems to be ok, and they will try to build some positive momentum against the Reds.
