History of Juan Soto in Timeline
Juan José Soto Pacheco is a professional baseball player from the Dominican Republic. He is an outfielder for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). Before joining the Yankees, he played for the Washington Nationals and San Diego Padres.
1989: Ken Griffey Jr. intentionally walked
In 1989, Ken Griffey Jr. was intentionally walked at a young age.
1993: Previous Youngest Home Run Derby Winner
Juan González became the youngest player to win the Home Run Derby in 1993.
October 25, 1998: Juan Soto is born
On October 25, 1998, Juan José Soto Pacheco was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
1998: First player born in 1998 in MLB
Juan Soto became the first player born in 1998 to appear in an MLB game.
2000: Exceptional Plate Discipline Ranking
At the conclusion of the 2021 season, Juan Soto ranked 5th all-time in walk rate and 10th all-time in career on-base percentage among hitters with at least 2000 plate appearances.
2012: Bryce Harper hits home run at 19
In 2012, Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper hit a home run at age 19.
July 2015: Signs with the Nationals
In July 2015, Juan Soto signed with the Washington Nationals as an international free agent for a $1.5 million signing bonus.
2015: Signs with the Nationals
In 2015, Juan Soto signed with the Washington Nationals as an international free agent.
September 2016: Promoted to Auburn Doubledays
In September 2016, Juan Soto was promoted to the Auburn Doubledays of the Class A-Short Season New York-Penn League.
July 2017: Ranked a top prospect
In July 2017, MLB Pipeline ranked Soto the Nationals' second-best prospect and the 42nd-best among all prospects.
September 2017: Rehabilitation stint
In September 2017, Juan Soto had a rehabilitation stint with the Gulf Coast Nationals.
May 15, 2018: Game against Yankees suspended
On May 15, 2018, a game between the Nationals and the Yankees was suspended due to inclement weather.
May 20, 2018: Called up to the Major Leagues
On May 20, 2018, Juan Soto was called up to the Major Leagues for the first time to reinforce the Nationals outfield after an injury to second baseman and outfielder Howie Kendrick.
June 2018: Ranked as a top prospect
In June 2018, Baseball America listed Juan Soto as the Nationals' top prospect and the fourth-best overall prospect in baseball.
June 18, 2018: Home run in suspended game
On June 18, 2018, Juan Soto hit a home run in a suspended game against the New York Yankees that originally started on May 15, 2018.
2018: The Soto Shuffle
During his 2018 rookie season, Juan Soto became known for his movements in the batter's box after successfully taking a pitch for a ball. This routine, dubbed the "Soto Shuffle," often includes him swinging his hips, wiping the dirt with a wide arc of his leg, tapping his leg, hopping, lowering himself into a squat, and staring at the pitcher. Soto explained that he started the routine in the minor leagues "to get in the minds of the pitchers, because sometimes they get scared."
2018: MLB Debut
Juan Soto made his MLB debut in 2018.
2019: World Series Champion
Juan Soto played a key part in the Nationals' first World Series championship in 2019.
2019: Gold Glove Finalist and Position Preference
Despite being a finalist for a Gold Glove Award as a left fielder after the 2019 season, Juan Soto expressed a preference for right field, his primary position during his brief minor league career.
2019: Soto Shuffle Incident
In Game 1 of the 2019 National League Championship Series, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas responded to Juan Soto's "Soto Shuffle" by grabbing his own crotch after retiring Soto on a groundout. Soto responded by saying, "He got me out, he can do whatever he wants." In later seasons, Soto removed the crotch-grabbing element from his routine.
2020: National League Batting Title
In 2020, Juan Soto won the National League batting title with a .351 average.
2020: Two-Strike Approach and Balanced Home Run Distribution
Juan Soto uses a "two-strike approach," raising his grip along the bat handle and adopting a wider, lower stance, sometimes described as a crouch, in the batter's box. He is known for his ability to drive the ball to all fields, even with two strikes. By the end of his 2020 season, Soto had hit 69 home runs in MLB, evenly distributed by direction: 23 to left field, 23 to center field, and 23 to right field.
2020: Transition to Right Field
The Nationals started playing Juan Soto as their starting right fielder late in the 2020 season.
2021: Exceptional Plate Discipline Ranking
At the conclusion of the 2021 season, Juan Soto ranked 5th all-time in walk rate and 10th all-time in career on-base percentage among hitters with at least 2000 plate appearances.
2021: Right Field as Primary Position
In 2021, Juan Soto became the Nationals' everyday right fielder. He is statistically a significantly better defender in right field than in left field: in left field he has produced −3.8 UZR per 150 games while in right field he has produced +1.5 UZR per 150 games.
2021: Contract Extension Offered
Prior to the 2021–22 MLB lockout, the Nationals offered Juan Soto a 13-year, $350 million contract extension. This offer would have signed the then 23-year-old Soto through his age 35 season in 2034.
March 22, 2022: Contract Agreement and 100th Career Home Run
On March 22, 2022, Juan Soto agreed to a $17.1 million contract with the Nationals, avoiding arbitration. On April 12, he hit his 100th career home run off of Braves pitcher Bryce Elder. At 23 years and 169 days old, Soto became the youngest player in Nationals history to achieve this milestone, and the eighth-youngest in MLB history.
August 2, 2022: Trade to the San Diego Padres
On August 2, 2022, the Nationals traded Juan Soto and Josh Bell to the San Diego Padres. In return, they received CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, Robert Hassell, James Wood, Jarlín Susana, and Luke Voit. The magnitude of the trade drew comparisons to the Herschel Walker trade in the NFL.
August 12, 2022: Facing the Nationals and Standing Ovation
On August 12, 2022, just ten days after being traded to the Padres, Juan Soto faced his former team, the Nationals, in Washington. He received a 45-second standing ovation from the crowd. For the remainder of the season with the Padres, Soto played 51 games, achieving a .236 batting average, 6 home runs, 16 RBIs, and 36 walks.
2022: All-Star Game and Home Run Derby Win
Juan Soto was named to the 2022 Major League Baseball All-Star Game and won the 2022 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby. He became the second-youngest Home Run Derby winner, just one day older than Juan González, who won in 1993.
2022: Contract Extension Rejection
Juan Soto reportedly rejected a 15-year, $440 million contract extension offer from the Nationals during the 2022 season.
2022: Season Performance Summary
In 2022, across both the Nationals and Padres, Juan Soto played 152 games with a .242 batting average, 27 home runs, 62 RBIs, and an MLB-leading 135 walks. Notably, he walked in 20.3% of his plate appearances, the highest in the major leagues, and had the highest BB/K% at 1.41. Furthermore, he swung at a lower percentage of pitches outside the strike zone (19.9%) than any other major league batter.
January 13, 2023: Contract Agreement and Season Performance
On January 13, 2023, Juan Soto signed a one-year, $23 million contract with the Padres, avoiding salary arbitration. During the 2023 season, he played in all 162 games, finishing with a .275 batting average, 35 home runs, 109 RBIs, and an MLB-leading 132 walks.
January 2023: Elian Soto signs with the Nationals
In January 2023, Juan Soto's younger brother, Elian, signed with the Nationals organization as an international free agent.
December 6, 2023: Trade to the New York Yankees
On December 6, 2023, the Padres traded Juan Soto and Trent Grisham to the New York Yankees. In exchange, they received Michael King, Drew Thorpe, Jhony Brito, Randy Vásquez, and Kyle Higashioka.
2024: Contract Agreement with the Yankees
Juan Soto and the Yankees avoided salary arbitration before the start of the 2024 season, agreeing to a one-year contract worth $31 million.
2024: Free Agency Anticipation
Juan Soto declined the Nationals' contract extension offer in 2021 and expressed a desire to wait until he became a free agent after the 2024 season to sign a contract.
2034: Potential Contract End Date
The contract extension offered to Juan Soto in 2021 would have signed him through his age 35 season in 2034.