Die-hard Yankees fans can't imagine Juan Soto being gone: “Why would you want to leave?”

NEW YORK – Juan Soto waited. Then he waited some more. After Gerrit Cole performed his windup and threw a pitch, Soto turned and saluted the Bleacher Creatures, who had called his name for 15 seconds during the “roll call” that has become a tradition at the start of every game at Yankee Stadium .

Soto didn't know it, but he had just confirmed the suspicions of 53-year-old Milton Ousland, a Brooklyn native and New York Yankees superfan known as “The Cowbell Man.”

Did Ousland, who has been ringing his cowbell in the Bronx since 1996, get the impression that Soto really loves interacting with Yankees fans in right field?

“The impression?” Ousland said, leaning over a metal railing in Section 203. “He loves it 100 percent. I know that for sure.”

Why?

“When we make the appeal,” Ousland said, “he milks it.”

It may have been just another day at the office for Soto, as he had three hits, including a double, in the Yankees' 6-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals in Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Saturday night.

All season long, Soto was showered with love by the Yankee Stadium crowd as he hit a personal best of 41 home runs, among other accomplishments. Since the All-Star break, we've been hearing “re-sign Soto” all the time – a reminder to owner Hal Steinbrenner that they don't care how much money he has to spend to keep the star slugger whose free agency this will be There's talk of the offseason.

But Soto said Saturday felt a little different.

“It was incredible,” Soto said of the reception he received. “They are getting loud. You really surprised me today.”

Here was Juan Soto's first playoff call-up.

He seemed to soak it up a little. pic.twitter.com/hRgIk4Pprx

— Brendan Kuty 🧟‍♂️ (@BrendanKutyNJ) October 7, 2024

The Bleacher Creatures are just hoping that the love they've shown him will tip the scales in the Yankees' favor as Soto and his agent Scott Boras weigh offers that could be as high as $500 million this offseason.

Even if it's just the tiniest bit.

“Of course we want him back,” said Marc Chapin, official director of Roll Call since 2006.

Chapin, a Manhattan resident, wore a small camera on the brim of his Yankees cap as he led the “roll call” on Saturday. He has had season tickets since 1999, back when the Yankees played in the old stadium.

He is convinced that Soto loves the Bleacher Creatures as much as they love him.

“We love interacting with the players,” he said. “These guys are very hyped.” They love the “appeal.” We love the “appeal”. Obviously, he is one of the best hitters in baseball. He loves it here, you can tell.”

Nanette Simmons is a Brooklyn native who recently beat stage three breast cancer. She has been attending Yankees games for more than 20 years and was among the thousands who chanted “Re-sign Soto” as the 25-year-old jogged to right field before the first inning on Saturday.

“It sounds wonderful,” Simmons said of the idea of ​​Soto staying for the rest of his career.

But Simmons was skeptical.

“I would love for him to stay and I would hope that he stays and doesn't have to worry about getting such a long contract,” she said.

Simmons wasn't the only skeptic. Joe Lopez, also a Bleacher creature, has been coming to games since 1987. Lopez said he thinks Soto loves Yankees fans, but that's not all he loves.

“He loves this,” Lopez said, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together to signal dollars. “It’s all about the money.”

Lopez was referring to the Yankees' last high-profile free agent pursuer: Aaron Judge.

Judge was drafted by the Yankees in 2013 and became the face of the franchise when he hit an American League-best 52 home runs as a rookie. The Yankees even set up a seating area for him in right field called “The Judge's Chambers.” But Judge became a free agent after the 2022 season and flirted hard with the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres before finally getting Steinbrenner to agree to a deal worth $360 million.

“We saw it two years ago with the Judge thing,” Lopez said. “It will be the same. Are they willing to come up with the money to pay him?”

So far, the Yankees certainly appear to be among Soto's most serious suitors.

Steinbrenner said on a YES Network podcast in May that he wants Soto to “stay in pinstripes for the rest of his career” and The athlete exclusively reported that Steinbrenner and Soto met privately for the first time at Yankee Stadium in July.

Soto, however, was reticent to give any hints about what he thinks.

When fans chant “Re-sign Soto” — sometimes multiple times in a single game — he acknowledges them with a slight nod of his head or a flick of his glove. When asked what he and Steinbrenner talked about in their meeting, he declined to give details, saying it was “good to get to know the owner” and that Steinbrenner “really cares about his players.”

There have been calls at Wrigley to “re-sign Soto.” pic.twitter.com/cVept4v7Vm

— ItsJustCC 🇩🇴🇨🇴 (@YoItsJustCC) September 6, 2024

In the week leading up to the ALDS, the topic of Soto's looming free agency came up several times. Each time, Soto said he hadn't thought about it, although he did bring up free agency unprompted a few weeks ago after hitting a home run in Seattle that gave him a home run in all 30 active major league ballparks.

“What a best way to go into free agency with all 30 stadiums off my list,” he told reporters at the time.

In that moment, it was hard to tell whether the impression the fans at Yankee Stadium had left on him had left a lasting impression, or whether he would be okay with simply remembering them, just like the fans who had him with the Washington Nationals and the San Diego Padres.

Ousland, “The Cowbell Guy,” had his own pitch for Soto.

“It’s the biggest franchise in sports,” Ousland said. “We have enough money. We have the biggest fans in sports. The atmosphere is incomparable. Why do you want to leave this?

“I don’t want to disrespect the (New York) Mets. If he wants to play for the Mets or another team for a little more money… I can't imagine that. I'm really confident he'll come back. I think he loves playing with Judge. Look at his numbers. It's no coincidence that he's having the best year of his career hitting in front of Judge and having pitchers pitching to him. Why would he want to leave that?”

Ousland stopped. He had another thought.

“If he has success in the playoffs,” he said, “they had better sign him.”

(Photo of Juan Soto acknowledging fans at Yankee Stadium: Luke Hales / Getty Images)