May 21, 2021; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder Juan Soto (22) reacts during his first inning at bat against the Baltimore Orioles at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto beat himself up after lack of hustle on a popup during Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles.
In MLB, we sometimes see the manager get angry at their player if they fail to hustle on a routine play. For the Washington Nationals, no coach needed to do so, because outfielder Juan Soto really beat himself up following a lapse of judgement during Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Soto stepped into the batters box with Andrew Stevenson on third base with two outs on the board while holding a 5-4 lead. On a 3-2 count, Soto hit a high popup just in front of home plate that appeared to be an easy out by catcher Pedro Severino. Instead, the ball dropped and Stevenson scored. The problem was that Soto had to hustle to first base after staring at the popup and was called out at first.
Not only did Soto end the inning, but he also prevented Stevenson from scoring. Soto was so upset with himself, that hitting coach Kevin Long had to talk with the outfielder in the dugout to try and calm him down.
Nationals: Juan Soto hard on himself after lack of hustle play
Nationals fans were no doubt won over by Soto kicking himself over a mistake that he made. The good thing is, the lapse in judgement was not costly. The Nationals ended up winning 6-5, thanks to Stevenson being walked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the fifth inning.
We can assure, based off Soto’s reaction, that he will never make this mistake again in his career.