Voz media US Voz.us

Yankees topple Mets in a victory marked by Juan Soto's controversial return

The Dominican outfielder was returning to Yankee Stadium for the first time since his departure to their cross-town rivals, the Mets, in a historic free agent signing.

Juan Soto on the field

Juan Soto on the fieldZUMAPRESS.com / Cordon Press.

Williams Perdomo
Published by

In the opener of the highly anticipated series between New York teams, the Yankees defeated the Mets 6-2 on Friday. They did it on a night when their fans greeted Juan Soto with boos.

The Dominican outfielder was returning to Yankee Stadium for the first time since his departure to their cross-town rivals, the Mets, in a historic free agent signing.

A large portion of the 47,0000 fans rose to their feet to loudly boo the Dominican in his first at-bat. Soto answered them by removing his helmet and waving to the stands with a smile.

Soto scored the Mets' first run on a Brandon Nimmo single, though they were already down 4-0 in the fourth inning.

Pitcher Carlos Rodón held the Mets' hitters in check, allowing two hits and one run in his five innings on the mound.

On offense, veteran Paul Goldschmidt drove in two runs and Cody Bellinger connected for three hits for the Yankees.

Soto, who is off to a slow start, had another subdued night with three walks and no hits.

In his first 44 games with the Mets, the Santo Domingo slugger has eight home runs, while last year he hit 41 with the Yankees.

In that campaign, Soto was key in helping the Bronx Bombers reach the World Series for the first time since 2009.

After his loss in the Fall Classic to the Dodgers, the Dominican became the object of desire in the MLB market and ended up opting for the astronomical contract from the Mets, who offered him $765 million for 15 years.

Despite this loss, the Yankees comfortably lead the American League East division with 26 wins and 18 losses, while the Mets command the National League East with a 28-17 record.

The second of the three-game "Subway Series" will be played on Saturday.

Elsewhere, Puerto Rican Javier Báez hit a home run for the Detroit Tigers in a 5-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays and Cuban Miguel Vargas had another homer in the White Sox's 13-3 loss to the Cubs in Chicago's "Crosstown Classic."

tracking