For someone not participating in the Home Run Derby, Juan Soto had a busy All-Star Monday. One of his several headline-making soundbites, however, was especially germane to Tuesday evening’s MLB All-Star Game: He guaranteed that Paul Skenes will face Aaron Judge.
For those unfamiliar, the Pittsburgh Pirates rookie phenom Skenes will start the All-Star Game for the National League. The Yankees slugger and AL Home Run King Judge will bat cleanup for the American League.
In an All-Star Game where managers try to cycle through as many players as possible, no pitcher is guaranteed to pitch more than one inning. That means the much-anticipated Skenes vs. Judge matchup is only guaranteed to happen if someone reaches base for the AL in the first inning and is not erased by a double-play.
“I’ll make sure he faces him,” Soto guaranteed to MLB Network on Monday.
Judge’s Yankees teammate is batting third for the AL behind leadoff hitter Steven Kwan (Guardians) and No. 2 hitter Gunnar Henderson (Orioles).
Judge himself seemed confident that someone would be able to get on base ahead of him.
“We’ve got a good lineup. I think somebody will work a good count or get a base hit. So we’ll see what happens,” Judge said, per a report from Field Level Media.
That will probably need to happen. National League manager Torey Lovullo of the Diamondbacks indicated in that same report that he would probably not have Skenes pitch more than an inning.
“Most likely, no. We have 11-12 pitchers to get through,” he said. “That’s probably the hardest part of being the manager, is trying to get every pitcher in the game.”
Aaron Judge: Paul Skenes Has ‘Electric Stuff’
The Yankees don’t play the Pirates until September, so Judge has yet to face Skenes in a real game. Still, the Yankees captain is impressed with what he’s seen from the guy who has started 11 games for Pittsburgh and is 6-0 with a 1.90 ERA.
“I’ve watched a couple of his games the last couple weeks since he got called up. It’s special stuff, electric stuff,” Judge said. “You can talk about the velocity on his pitches, but the guy is a pitcher. He can work all three, four, five of his pitches, throw it any part of the zone, any count. He’s a complete pitcher. It’s going to be fun.”
Soto said the same, lauding Skenes for accomplishing all he has in such a short period of time. Skenes was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft and began lighting up the Majors less than a year later.
“It’s just incredible to see a guy like that put in the performance he’s been doing,” he said on MLB Network. “You know he’s a young guy he’s just coming in, coming up, showing his stuff and everything. It’s pretty electric stuff so we will see how it goes.”
Soto Makes the Media Day Rounds
The Yankees’ newest star is a great quote, and the media seems to know that. He sounded off on everything from his upcoming free agency to Yankees fans, in addition to the possible Judge vs. Skenes matchup.
Asked in an appearance on Fox what the biggest adjustment to New York has been, Soto shouted out Yankees fans.
“They want to win, they are really hungry to win,” he said. “Most impressive fans I’ve ever played for.”
A free agent at the end of the year, Soto’s future has been the subject of plenty of debate. The Yankees will certainly be a major factor in his free agency, but so will every team that can afford his likely exorbitant price tag.
Soto said something else that will surely enamor him to Yankees fans.
“It’s a little uncomfortable wearing different jerseys and changing teams,” Soto told ESPN’s Jorge Castillo. “I’m looking forward to wearing one for a long time.”
Lastly, Soto gave a popular answer to a classic MLB question: Which player would you most like to play with?
“I mean, Shohei [Ohtani] would be one of the best,” he said.
Maybe some good news for Dodgers fans.
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