Juan Soto Returns to Face the Bleacher Creatures
It was a match made in baseball heaven. One of the best players in the game was in the flower of his youth. He was playing right field for the franchise everyone wanted to play for if they were honest with themselves. It was Yankee Stadium, and the bleacher creatures serenaded him daily. His name was Juan Soto.
He acted the part, acknowledging the creatures with arms formed into a heart after every home run. Yankee fans, spearheaded by a Dominican fan base hungry for a national star, did everything to make him feel like this could be home. The idea of the first Dominican to have his number in Monument Park seemed within easy reach. The captain, Aaron Judge, even moved to the center to allow Soto to play the smaller piece of the park and make the transition smoother. In a few years, it would be his team as Judge that would pass the torch.
Now he wears the uniform of the New York Mets. He has been called a traitor, a fake, a mercenary, and a money-first player. Yankee fans will not forget that Soto spurned them when the Yankees made the biggest offer they ever presented to a player in their storied history. They showed that they were serious about retaining him. The difference in the end was not significant. Now, Soto returns to that patch of grass right now not as the owner but as a visitor with a three-day temp pass only. The greeting he will receive should be epic, as the Bronx will unleash seven months of frustration on the player with the largest baseball contract ever received.
A look at the upcoming three-game set, the Subway Series renewed, we see a contrast between two stars who were once the deadliest one-two punch in MLB history. Juan Soto has, at this point of the season, not come close to living up to the contract he received. He is hitting only .255. Aaron Judge, on the other hand, is on pace to have his greatest season ever with a triple crown title in the cards. He is leading the A.L. with a .412 average, in home runs, RBI’s, and hits. Now they face off to see who is the best player in New York. This will be a postseason-level matchup as the Mets and Yankees lead their respective divisions.
This will be a tale of two teams, one city, and unrequited love. It should make for great theatre as Soto will look to attempt to show what Yankee fans have missed. He will bring Pete Alonso as his protection. The Yankees will look to show off Soto's replacement, Trent Grisham, whose numbers are superior to the best player in the game, so the contract says. In addition, Paul Goldschmidt and Ben Rice have made this lineup deeper. This will be an insight and a preview into what these teams are capable of now and in October. The one certainty is that the bleacher creatures will remind Soto that he is no longer home.
