Juan Soto’s first multi-homer game with Yankees ends mini-slump, helps crush White Sox
NEW YORK — So much for Juan Soto’s slump.
The superstar slugger exploded for four hits, including two home runs, and three RBIs in the Yankees’ 6-1 win over the Chicago White Sox on Saturday in the Bronx, emphatically ending an eight-game mini-skid.
Soto crushed a 417-foot solo home run in the first inning; smoked an RBI single in the third; added a 437-foot solo shot in the fifth; and punctuated his powerful performance with an eighth-inning single.
All four of Soto’s hits registered an exit velocity of at least 107.3 mph, with the first three coming against White Sox starter Brad Keller.
It’s Soto’s first multi-homer game with the Yankees and the 18th of his seven-year MLB career.
Soto went 4 for 31 without a home run and with only one RBI over his previous eight games, dropping his average from .338 to .301. With Saturday’s 4-for-4 outing, which also included a sixth-inning walk, Soto’s average jumped back up to .317.
The home runs were the 10th and 11th of the season for Soto, who joined Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton as Yankees to reach double figures through 47 games. The Yankees became the first MLB team with three players to reach 10 home runs this season.
Soto’s offensive explosion came amid renewed attention around his impending free agency. Speaking on YES Network’s “Yankees News & Views” podcast, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner recently expressed an openness to having in-season discussions about a contract extension with the three-time All-Star. Soto, 25, responded by saying his “door is always open.”
Acquired in a franchise-altering trade with the Padres in December, Soto leads the Yankees with 37 RBIs. His huge performance Saturday served as a highlight in an afternoon all about power.
Fast-rising starter Luis Gil repeatedly pumped upper-90s fastballs past the overmatched White Sox en route to a career-high 14 strikeouts. That lofty total set a new single-game record for a Yankees rookie, passing Orlando Hernandez’s 13 strikeouts in 1998.
Six of Gil’s punch-outs came on swinging third strikes against his four-seam fastball. He struck out the side in the fourth and fifth innings during a stretch in which he recorded seven consecutive Ks.
The hard-throwing Gil, 25, limited light-hitting Chicago to one run over six innings, continuing his excellence as the fill-in for injured ace Gerrit Cole. Gil, who totaled seven appearances with the Yankees from 2021-22 before undergoing Tommy John surgery, is now 5-1 with a 2.39 ERA this season.
It was the sixth consecutive game a Yankees starter pitched at least six innings and gave up one run or fewer. The Yankees have won each of those games, giving them their first six-game win streak since 2022.
Also delivering a powerful performance Saturday was Stanton, who remained red hot with an RBI double and a solo home run. It was the fourth consecutive multi-hit game by Stanton, who also homered and doubled in Friday’s win.
Stanton is 13 for 36 (.361) with five home runs over his last nine games.
The Yankees, who improved to an AL-best 32-15, will try Sunday afternoon to complete a three-game sweep of the White Sox, who fell to 14-32. Carlos Rodón (4-2, 3.31 ERA) is set to pitch for the Yankees, while Chris Flexen (2-3, 4.46 ERA) is scheduled to start for Chicago.
