After injuring his knee while making a spectacular sliding catch into the right field wall at the Oakland Coliseum on Thursday, New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto was in the starting lineup for Friday’s game. Until he was not. The Yankees removed Soto from the lineup due to knee pain. But Soto remained prepared, going through treatment and a pregame ritual. “We tried the knee early before the game,” Soto told reporters. “We went into the cage and hit a little bit. We also tried the gym, doing some squats and other exercises. It replied fairly nicely.
“I felt good throughout the game. It wasn’t sore or anything after all of our hard work. That’s when I realized I had a strong possibility of being an option.” Soto addressed Yankees manager Aaron Boone in the dugout early in a close game that remained knotted at one until the top of the tenth. “Juan came to me early in the game and said, ‘If we need a hit, big spot, late, I’m good,'” Yankees manager Aaron Boone explained. Soto kept his word, extending the Yankees’ lead to 3-1 with a pinch-hit, RBI double. The club would later add another run in the inning.
Boone stated that he didn’t want to start the inning with Soto on second because he was afraid the Athletics would walk the Yankees’ slugger. “Once the lefty [T.J. McFarland] came into the game, I was like, ‘Nah.'” “Then, I’m like, ‘It’s Juan Soto, though.'” “Once we got to first and third with the no outs, I knew they kinda had to pitch to him there.” “I felt like it was the time.” And Soto, who legged out a double on the hit, said his knee held up fine. “A little bit of soreness, but not as bad as it was this morning.” Soto’s X-rays of the knee came back negative.
When asked if he’ll be in the lineup on Saturday, Soto said he’d “see how I wake up.” Soto, 25, had a.288/.419/.577 slash line with 120 runs scored, 40 home runs, 104 RBI, and 124 walks in 150 games for New York this season. The Yankees, who secured a postseason berth on Wednesday, need five wins to claim the American League East title.
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