Juan Soto hit three home runs in a game for the first time in his career on Tuesday night, hitting them in three consecutive at-bats for the New York Yankees against the Chicago White Sox.
Soto started his home run streak with a two-run shot to left field off starter Jonathan Cannon in the third inning and hit another home run to lead off the fifth inning, this time to the opposite field.
“It locks me in every time I hit the ball that way,” Soto said. “I feel like that’s my strength right there. I feel really good about it.”
The four-time All-Star added his 33rd homer of the season in the seventh inning off left-handed reliever Fraser Ellard, hitting a drive to right field that made the score 4-0.
With a chance to tie the major league record for home runs in a game with four, Soto walked his last time up in the ninth inning. He smiled after missing a 3-0 pitch that was slightly outside the strike zone.
“I was ready,” Soto said with a grin. His big night helped the Yankees win 4-1 and move into first place in the AL East, half a game ahead of Baltimore.
This was the 40th time a Yankees player has hit three home runs in a game, including postseason games. New York rookie Ben Rice had one earlier this summer, on July 6 against Boston.
The 25-year-old Soto now has 23 career games with multiple home runs. The only player with more by age 25 was Hall of Famer Mel Ott, with 24.
In his last 28 games, Soto is batting .351 with 12 home runs and a 1.233 OPS.
“I’ve been working on just trying to be accurate to the ball,” Soto said. “Just be accurate with my barrel and see what happens.”
