Soto exits after rain delay with forearm discomfort

NEW YORK — Heading into the 56-minute rain delay on Thursday night vs. Minnesota, the Yankees were riding the high of a bounceback fifth inning, responding with a run after the Twins threatened to close the gap on their early advantage. On the other side of the delay, New York’s starpower was noticeably diminished, as Juan Soto exited with left forearm discomfort when the top of the sixth finally got underway. Alex Verdugo took his place in the lineup.

Soto, who reached base on two walks in three plate appearances before exiting, was due to lead off the bottom of the sixth. There didn’t seem to be a preceding event on the field that triggered Soto’s removal. He made a couple of throws to second base in the top of the fifth, one from the right-field corner on Alex Kirilloff’s double and another on Carlos Santana’s RBI single. The velocity on Soto’s throws on those plays was 75.3 mph and 58.4 mph, respectively.

Soto entered Thursday night as one of the main talismans for the surging Bronx Bombers, who were going for their eighth straight win. The left-handed slugger was slashing .365/.488/.841 in his past 18 games, crushing eight home runs and adding 19 RBIs and 16 walks.