Yankees need to save Juan Soto from himself before hand injury gets worse

The New York Yankees were scorching hot at the beginning of the summer. The team posted a 21-7 record in May and entered June on an eight-game winning streak. Their top-ranked starting rotation was only supposed to improve with the highly anticipated return of Gerrit Cole. Instead, everything has seemingly fallen apart. The Yankees finished June barely above .500 and they've lost 17 of their last 24 games, including an abysmal 3-7 start in July.

The slump has been so bad that Yankees executives even traveled with the team on Tuesday to witness the club's 5-2 loss against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. The Yankees won just one game during the three-game series, which the Rays wrapped up with a 5-4 win on Thursday.

Some of the Yankees' struggles can be attributed to the health of Juan Soto. The Yankees star has played in just 10 games since jamming his right hand while sliding into home plate during a victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on June 28.

Juan Soto plans to play in All-Star Game despite still being in pain

While Soto has only missed one game, the injury has continued to cause him pain. He also still plans to play in the All-Star Game, according to MLB reporter Bryan Hoch.

At some point, the Yankees have to curb Soto's competitive spirit and prioritize his health. His willingness to play through injury says a lot about his character and love for the game, but the Yankees will need Soto healthy if they want to make a deep postseason run.

According to Hoch, Soto "believes the right hand injury is manageable and will go away eventually."

For the Yankees, there is no benefit to Soto playing in the All-Star game — especially when he is still dealing with some pretty significant pain. That time would be much better spent by resting during the All-Star break.

Soto homered, doubled, and drew two walks during the Yankees loss to the Rays on Thursday, but one particular moment in the game made it obvious that he clearly needs time to heal. Soto whiffed on a swing in the seventh inning and was forced to cause a timeout due to the pain that stemmed from his bruised hand.

“Still painful, but it’s been better [recently],” Soto said after the series finale at Tropicana Field. “I have my days like the first day here, it was really painful, but it got better the next two days.”

Despite their recent collapse, the Yankees padded enough of a cushion early in the season to remain competitive in the postseason race, and they certainly have the talent to pull themselves back together.

The Yankees will receive a brief respite during the All-Star break, but they'll have to make it through a critical three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles first. The series could either sink the Yankees into a further deficit in the American League East, or it could send them into the All-Star break with the lead. So far, New York has gotten off to a good start — despite a bench-clearing brawl in the ninth inning. The Yankees captured a 4-1 victory in the series opener against the Orioles on Friday.

The Yankees have been locked in a tight race with the Orioles for the top seed in the American League East throughout the entire season. Heading into the final two games of the first half, the Yankees have a 57-39 record and sit just one game behind the Orioles.