The game resumed in a 3-3 tie after rain halted the originally scheduled game and the makeup was rained out on May 16. When the game started last month, the game-time temperature was 85, but by Monday it increased to 95 with a heat index of 105.
Soto, who made his major league debut on May 20, batted for Matt Adams against Chad Green (2-1). He gave the Nationals a two-run lead by hammering a 3-1 fastball into the second-to-last row of the seats in the second deck in right.
It was Soto's sixth homer and third against the Yankees.
The resumption of the game will be considered his major league debut with an asterisk, but the 433-foot drive was not his first career homer.
Besides homering, Soto also contributed defensively in the seventh. He made a running catch on a sinking liner by Didi Gregorius and then made an accurate throw to easily get Gary Sanchez for a double play at second.
Anthony Rendon hit a solo homer off Masahiro Tanaka before the game was halted last month. Brian Stevenson added an RBI single and Pedro Severino hit an RBI double.
Bryce Harper shaved off his beard and went 0-for-3 with a walk. He went 0-for-1 with a walk in the resumption part of the game.
Tyler Austin, who was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Friday, hit a two-run homer and lifted a sacrifice fly before the game was suspended.
Wander Suero (1-0) relieved Gio Gonzalez and struck out Giancarlo Stanton and allowed a double to Sanchez in the seventh after pitching the sixth. Sammy Solis induced the double play to end the inning and Ryan Madson pitched a scoreless eighth.
Madson allowed a double over Soto's head to Greg Bird, who was on the disabled list for the originally scheduled game. After allowing a single to rookie Gleyber Torres, he retired Aaron Hicks on a groundout.
Sean Doolittle fanned Aaron Judge and Stanton in the ninth before retiring Sanchez. Since statistics revert to May 15, Doolittle was credited with his 10th save and he has 18 saves overall.
Tanaka allowed three runs and four hits in five innings while throwing 72 pitches. Gonzalez allowed three runs (two earned) and six hits in five innings.
The game was halted due to lightning in the area along with rain after Suero struck out Judge with Torres on second to end the top of the sixth.
--Field Level Media
NY Yankees | Washington | |
Masahiro Tanaka | Player | Gio Gonzalez |
No Decision | W/L | No Decision |
5.0 | IP | 5.0 |
2 | Strikeouts | 5 |
4 | Hits | 6 |
5.40 | ERA | 3.60 |
NY Yankees | Washington | |
Tyler Austin | Player | Anthony Rendon |
2 | Hits | 2 |
3 | RBI | 1 |
1 | HR | 1 |
5 | TB | 5 |
1.000 | Avg | .500 |
Team | Hits | HR | TB | Avg | LOB | K | RBI | BB | SB | Errors |
NY Yankees | 9 | 1 | 16 | .273 | 19 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
Washington | 8 | 2 | 17 | .258 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |