WASHINGTON -- Add time travel to the list of Juan Soto's accomplishments.
On Monday, the Washington Nationals rookie crushed a tiebreaking, pinch-hit, two-run homer against the New York Yankees in the continuation of a game that started May 15 -- five days before his big league debut.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Soto's blast will not be considered his first major league homer, but it will be counted as a home run hit on May 15.
"I don't think about all that," Soto said when asked about the time-traveling quirk of his homer. "I know because somebody told me. I just come to play my game and keep going."
Soto's homer Monday -- a 444-foot shot off New York reliever Chad Green that reached the back of the second deck in right-center field -- was his sixth since being called up from Double-A Harrisburg on May 20 and his second against the Yankees.
The homer was the difference in the Nationals' 5-3 win in Game 1.
Soto started in left field in Game 2 of the doubleheader and went 2-for-4, but the Yankees won 4-2.
"A lot of people tell me, 'Hey, you're killing the Yankees,'" Soto said. "Everybody knows the Yankees, likes the Yankees. That feels pretty good.''
Before making his debut, Soto had just 31 at-bats above Class A. In 25 games with the Nationals, the 19-year-old rookie is hitting .325 with a .413 on-base percentage. Before the season, he was ranked as the No. 42 prospect in baseball by ESPN's Keith Law.
"Geez, he has a bright future. How old is he, 19? You don't see too many 19-year-olds doing what he's doing,'' Yankees slugger Aaron Judge said about Soto. "I'm excited to see him develop for years to come."
Although Soto's feat Monday was unusual, it's not unprecedented. Former All-Star sluggers Dave Parker (1973) and Barry Bonds (1986) are among the players who recorded hits in the continuation of games that were started prior to them making their debuts.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
