ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Juan Soto’s right hand doesn’t seem to be the problem, as long as he doesn’t strike out.
On Thursday night, he mostly succeeded in that regard, barring one painful whiff.
Soto homered, doubled and walked two in the Yankees’ 5-4 loss to the Rays but struck out in the seventh inning and was forced to take a timeout to relieve pain from a bruised hand he sustained while sliding into the ground two weeks ago.
“It’s still sore, but it’s getting better,” Soto said after the series finale at Tropicana Field. “Some days, like the first day I got here, it was really painful, but the next two days it was better.”
Soto missed one game on June 29 with a hand injury but has not missed a game since, and said medical staff told him it was “nothing serious.”
He continues to work out with his trainer daily and expects the injury to “heal naturally” over the next few weeks.
“As long as I can hit the ball, I’ll be OK,” Soto said. “Hopefully I don’t have to deal with it all season.”
Manager Aaron Boone said Soto was clearly in pain after whiffing twice in his past three games, but blamed it on a pain tolerance issue.
“If there was any chance he could do more damage, he wouldn’t be out there,” Boone said.
As a result, Soto is expected to play in next Tuesday’s All-Star Game.
“Yeah, why not?,” Soto said. “It’s a great experience. Of course, I’ll be careful. I’m going to take good care of it. I’ll let everybody know about my hand. We’ll see what happens. I’m just going to have fun and enjoy the show.”
DJ LeMahieu was left out of the batting order on Thursday after suffering an injury at the plate on Wednesday night.
The veteran Yankees infielder underwent a CT scan Thursday to make sure a foul ball that ricocheted and hit him in the neck the night before was normal.
“We feel like he’s in good shape,” Boone said, suggesting LeMahieu went to the doctor to “rule out any significant injuries” and that a concussion had also been ruled out.
Relief pitcher Scott Efros (Tommy John surgery/back surgery) made his eighth rehab start Thursday for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, pitching one scoreless inning on 15 pitches.
Boone said he doesn’t know how many more rehab appearances Efros will need to make before returning to the Yankees, but since Efros hasn’t pitched in the major leagues since the 2022 season, the Yankees could use up all of Efros’ 30-day rehabilitation period, which began June 19.
“Efros is getting closer,” Boone said.
Boone reiterated that Juan Soto will not need to rest due to right hand soreness, despite the fact that his hand is heavily bandaged.
“We feel like we’re in a good place with that,” Boone said. “Obviously he’s still impacting the ball and having great at-bats like he always does. Hopefully, as the whiffs and awkward swings continue, the pain will subside some. But I think that’s all there is to it at this point.”
Nick Burdy (right hip inflammation) advanced to batting practice on June 30 but suffered a setback, but Boone said he’s “feeling a lot better” and is expected to take the mound on Friday.
Ian Hamilton (latissimus strain) began his throwing program earlier this week after resting for about three weeks.
After some setbacks in his rehab, pitcher Lou Trivino (UCL surgery) joined the team at Tropicana Field on Wednesday and Thursday to throw bullpen balls.
Jon Bertie (calf strain) is back to about 95 percent running ability, in addition to hitting and picking up ground balls.
The utility man is expected to remain in Tampa through the weekend and work out at the team’s facility before beginning a rehab assignment after the All-Star break.
