Inside The Pinstripes

Juan Soto Already Living Up To Hype With New York Yankees

New York Yankees superstar Juan Soto has been exactly as advertised.

Tyler Maher

New York Yankees superstar Juan Soto has been exactly as advertised.
New York Yankees superstar Juan Soto has been exactly as advertised. / Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
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When the New York Yankees traded for Juan Soto and acquired him from the San Diego Padres during the offseason, the hope was that they'd finally found a worthy superstar to pair with Aaron Judge.

So far, Soto's been exactly as advertised.

Entering Tuesday's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Soto's looked like a bona fide star. He's off to a scintillating start with an American League-leading nine hits through his first five games, batting .450/.560/.650 with four RBIs. Not surprisingly, the Yankees were a perfect 5-0 during those contests.

During his first week in pinstripes, Soto has shown off the various facets of his game that make him such a special player. He's been locked in at the plate, drawing more walks (five) than strikeouts (three) and clubbing a pair of extra-base hits. He's also made some nice plays in the field, contributing on both sides of the ball and earning his first AL Player of the Week award.

While Soto hasn't been with the Yankees long, his new teammates are already gravitating towards him and seem to be enjoying his presence. He is always a player who's led by example, but now that he's 25 and in his seventh MLB season, he's starting to come into his own as a leader and is rubbing off on younger teammates like Anthony Volpe and Oswaldo Cabrera.

In that regard, Soto is providing a much-needed spark to a franchise that has felt stuck in neutral the last few years. He's bringing a different kind of energy and intensity to the ballpark every night, and it's clearly having a positive effect.

It's still early, but don't be surprised if Soto ends up being the missing piece that gets this team over the hump and back into the World Series.

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Tyler Maher
TYLER MAHER

Tyler grew up in Massachusetts and is a huge Boston sports fan, especially the Red Sox. He went to Tufts University and played club baseball for the Jumbos. Since graduating, he has worked for MLB.com, The Game Day, FanDuel and Forbes. When he's not writing about baseball, he enjoys running, traveling, and playing fetch with his golden retriever.

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