Yankees star Juan Soto was removed from New York’s 8-5 win over the Minnesota Twins because of soreness in his left forearm.
When play resumed at Yankee Stadium on Thursday night after a rain delay that lasted nearly an hour, Soto was replaced in the top of the sixth inning. Aaron Judge moved to the outfield to take Soto’s place in right field for the rest of the game, and Alex Verdugo came off the bench to play left field.
The extent of Soto’s injury is unclear (he will undergo further evaluation on Friday), but manager Aaron Boone said after the game that Soto had been feeling discomfort in his forearm for about a week, though nothing significant occurred Thursday night that would have caused the pain.
Aaron Boone said Juan Soto’s forearm soreness has been bothering him all week.
He is scheduled for imaging tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/IWPkhfnkQY
— Yankees Video (@snyyankees) June 7, 2024
“When the game was stopped due to rain, he was still in pain,” Boone said, “so he didn’t feel like it was right to go back in and that was something that was bothering him.”
Soto was hitless in one at-bat and walked two before being ejected from Thursday night’s game. The 25-year-old Soto, whom the Yankees acquired in a blockbuster trade with the San Diego Padres last offseason, has started every game this year and is batting .318 with 53 RBI and 17 homers.
It’s unclear how long Soto will be out or if he will be out at all. Yankees top outfield prospect Jason Dominguez was replaced before the eighth inning in Thursday night’s Triple-A game, which the Yankees confirmed was expected. His seven defensive innings were his longest appearance during his rehab period. It’s unclear how long Dominguez will be with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
Despite losing Soto, the Yankees beat the Twins by three runs, their eighth straight win, and the Twins’ record improved to 6-0 this season, with their record improving to 45-19 this season.
