SEE IT: Juan Soto walks it off for Nationals on Opening Day vs. Braves

Nationals

SEE IT: Juan Soto walks it off for Nationals on Opening Day vs. Braves

Entering the bottom of the ninth tied at 5-5 with the Atlanta Braves on their delayed Opening Day, the Washington Nationals had runners on first and second with no outs and were in need of one big hit to seal the game.

Who was the player to deliver? Well, of course, it was none other than Juan Soto.

Sending a base hit up the middle against reliever Will Smith, Victor Robles scored from second to give the Nationals a walk-off 6-5 win to begin their 2021 season.

The swing that ended it came on a 3-0 count, but it was clear that Soto had the green light to test his luck in the favorable situation. Asked about it after the game, taking a strike wasn’t really his mindset.

“Hell no,” Soto said on MASN following the win when asked if he thought about taking a pitch.

Soto’s brilliance capped off an exciting Opening Day for the Nationals that featured a solid comeback. Playing five days after their scheduled first game of the season due to a COVID-19 outbreak, Washington fell behind early 3-0 as Max Scherzer surrendered three home runs over the first two innings.

Washington would eventually trail 4-2 before trying the game at 4-4 and then again at 5-5 after Atlanta took the lead. This was all done without key contributors like Kyle Schwarber, Josh Bell and others who were out due to COVID-19 exposure.

At just 22-years-old, Soto is the present and future of the franchise. If they are going to go back to the World Series, a lot of it will fall on the young phenom’s shoulders.

In game one of 2021, he showed that he’s up for the challenge.