Juan Soto got his official Yankees welcome — a John Sterling home run call.
The Yankees outfielder slugged his first Yankees home run, putting the Bronx Bombers up in the seventh inning in what was a thrilling 5-3 win, when he cranked a shot over the left-field wall off Astros reliever Bryan Abreu.
“Winning the way we’ve been winning these games is incredible,” Soto said.
As Soto crushed the ball and circled the bases, Sterling, the Yankees’ WFAN radio play-by-play man, let out a new call.
“And the pitch hit in the air down the left field line toward the wall — it’s gone. It went over the high wall,” he said. “Juan Soto’s first home run as a Yankee, a fly ball down the left field line.”
Then, Sterling got to the fun part.
“There is a Soto photo, a home run into the left-field seats. He’s Juanderful, marvelous,” Sterling said, singing the last three words. “And the Yankees have now taken a 4-3 lead.”
It’s not clear exactly what Sterling was referencing with the song at the end, but the lyrics match up with the 1920s song “‘S Wonderful” composed by George Gershwin.
Soto’s first homer officially went 349 feet at 102 mph, but Sterling’s call gave it some more oomph.
“He’s an incredible guy,” said Oswaldo Cabrera, whose two-run homer tied the score. “He’s not just a good baseball player, outside of the field he’s an amazing person too. Everybody loves that guy inside and outside of the field. But when we are in the cage, I’m like a kid just watching a big hero.”