Three games in, and Oswaldo Cabrera looks like a brand new player for the New York Yankees. He's a combined 7-for-13 with two home runs and six RBI. The Yankees have won three straight, all come-from-behind wins against the Houston Astros. Take Cabrera and Juan Soto out of the equation, and they're probably 0-3 instead.
That connection is far more than just coincidental.
Cabrera, who has had an up-and-down career thus far, has benefited greatly from the addition of the superstar Soto to the lineup. Both players are 25 years old, and Cabrera is entranced by the young superstar. While there may be some physical limitations to how high Cabrera can reach, Cabrera clearly also thinks part of the disparity between the two players has to do with the mental side and work ethic.
Juan Soto is helping Oswaldo Cabrera unlock his batting
After another big game on Saturday, Ken Rosenthal asked Cabrera what changed after a 1-for-23 spring training. He pointed to the work he's done with the hitting coach, but also the time he's had watching Soto:
"A lot of work, watching Soto on the cage. I think that's a big key too during the spring training, watching that guy... That guy have a lot of things that make Soto be Soto."
It's not just press speak. He delayed an interview with Yankees radio host Suyzyn Waldman to make sure he got his time in watching Soto hit in the batting cage. Here's what she said about Cabrera during Friday's broadcast:
"When I was gonna interview Oswaldo Cabrera today, he said, 'Can I go out for 10 minutes and come back?' And I said 'Sure, where you going?' He said 'I want to go watch Soto hit, OK?' So he wants to watch everything he does. The discipline, and I just thought that was great."
Clearly, Cabrera looks up to Soto, and that role model is paying dividends already.