Soto mocks pitcher for crying, a breakdown
What Happened
In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Washington Nationals trail the Atlanta Braves by six runs with one out remaining. However, the Nationals have the bases loaded, and star player Juan Soto steps up to the plate. The Braves pitching coach visits the mound and instructs pitcher Will Smith to avoid giving Soto anything to hit, as Soto could potentially hit a game-tying grand slam. As Soto approaches the plate, he engages in some trash talk with Smith. Soto reminds Smith that the Nationals offered him a $400 million contract, which he turned down. Soto confidently states, "I'm their best player. They gave me $400 mil. I turned it down." Smith tries to carefully pitch around Soto, refusing to challenge him. Soto becomes increasingly frustrated, shuffling his feet and staring down Smith. He mockingly tells Smith to "keep that hip in there," implying that the pitcher is afraid to pitch to him. When Smith finally throws a ball well outside the strike zone, Soto sarcastically tells the runner at third to "stay at third." Soto then scowls at Smith, demanding that he "attack me. Be competitive." As the count reaches 3-0, it's clear that the Braves are intentionally walking Soto. Soto angrily throws his bat and lets out a string of profanity, saying, "Fucking shit. Go to fucking first, motherfucker." However, Soto ultimately takes the walk, laughing and mocking Smith's obvious discomfort. Soto comments, "I'll go cry about it in the dugout, dog. It's not my fault I'm better than you, and your coach told you to walk me because you're not as good as me." The heated exchange between the two players underscores the intense rivalry between the Nationals and Braves, as well as Soto's supreme confidence in his abilities. Despite the Nationals' significant deficit, Soto refuses to back down, and his bravado and competitive spirit are on full display throughout the confrontation.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that moment23-year-old Juan Soto called 32-year-old Will Smith the crybaby in the middle of the game,
and this one is brought to you by DraftKings. The Braves are up six runs in the bottom of the
ninth inning, one out to go, and the game is over. But the Nationals have bases loaded,
and Juan Soto's coming to the plate. So the pitching coach runs out to the mound, and he
says, you know, maybe just let him have the one run. Don't give this guy anything to hit,
because if he hits a grand slam, they're in the game, and he's like their best player.
And Soto says, yeah, I'm their best player. They gave me 400 mil. I turned it down. I'm says,
oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I would too. I'd do the same thing. Good for you. Good
for you. Will Smith looks at the ball, says, okay, let's put him close, but not in there.
That's a ball, and Soto shuffles and stares and bangs his hip, says, keep that hip in there.
He thinks they're pitching to him still. He's like, they're not going to walk me and give me
the free RBI. Come on, bring it. Let's go. Next pitch, they're going to go with a breaking ball
out of the zone and low, and Soto's like, you stay at third.
And he looks at the pitcher and says, are you not pitching to me? Come on now. Scowls at him a
little. Like, we're both pros here. Attack me. Be competitive. Will Smith cursing to himself,
not enjoying the situation. Now it's a 2-0 count. Pitch to hit if he's ever going to get one.
Smith's got to be careful, and that's a ball way in, and now Soto stares at him, does the shuffle,
looks at the dugout. I think he's starting to realize, like, oh, that's what that mound visit
was about. You guys are just, oh.
This blows for me. Thought we were competitors, and we were just going to compete,
but you're just going to be scared of me? All right. So the 3-0 comes. Is this going to be
anywhere near? Take sign probably, because now you got to take your walk, and that's high,
and Soto's like, really? Throws his bat, gives him a nice look here, like, come on, dog. Really?
Fucking shit. Go to fucking first, motherfucker. And Soto laughs, and he says, okay.
I'll go to first. Sure. That's what you want. Fuck you. And now Soto laughs even more. He's like,
wow. You're really upset about this, huh? You fucking asked me to do that, you motherfucker.
And he gets taken out, and Soto just going to laugh a little bit and be like, ha, ha, ha. Got
under his skin. Get out of here. Fuck you. Smith leaves, and Soto just says, I'll go cry about it
in the dugout, dog. It's not my fault I'm better than you, and your coach told you to walk me
because you're not as good as me. Once again, thank you to DraftKings for sponsoring this video.
Appreciate them, as always. Nothing like being a competitor. Your coach says, hey,
we're going to let a run score instead of letting you throw this guy a strike,
and then that player turns around and says, oh, scared of me?