Soto cranks a pair of homers to back record day by Gil

NEW YORK — The Yankees hope to keep Juan Soto in pinstripes for a very long time. And with performances like the one he enjoyed on Saturday afternoon, it’s not difficult to see why.

Soto broke out of a mini-slump with his first multihomer performance as a Yankee, clearing the fences in the first and fifth innings and going 4-for-4 as New York won its sixth consecutive game, a 6-1 victory over the White Sox at Yankee Stadium.

Giancarlo Stanton and Jose Trevino also homered to pace the Bombers’ attack, supporting right-hander Luis Gil, who struck out a career-high 14 over six innings.

Gil’s 14 strikeouts established a Yankees rookie record, surpassing the mark of 13 set in 1998 by Orlando Hernández. By coincidence, “El Duque” tossed Saturday’s ceremonial first pitch in the Bronx.

Both of Soto’s homers came off Chicago starter Brad Keller. Soto’s bat had cooled in his previous eight games, with just four hits to show for 31 at-bats (.129), but manager Aaron Boone said before Saturday’s game that he saw encouraging signs from the 25-year-old star.

“There’s a consistency to what he does and a confidence to what he’s doing,” Boone said. “He has a real good understanding of himself and hitting. He knows the things that he wants to work on.”

Soto joined Aaron Judge (12) and Stanton (11) as Yankees with double-digit home run totals. New York is the Majors’ only team in 2024 to have three players with 10 or more homers.

Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner said this week that he is open to discussing an in-season extension with Soto, who was acquired from the Padres in December and is eligible for free agency after the season.

“I think we’d like to see him here for the rest of his career; I don’t think there’s any doubt of that,” Steinbrenner told the YES Network.

Speaking earlier this week during the club’s series against the Twins, Soto said that his door is “always open” to discussing a new contract, adding that he would leave all negotiations to his agent, Scott Boras.

“They know the phone number and everything. They know where to call,” Soto said. “For me right here, I’m focusing on playing baseball. My thing is, try to help the team win.”