NL WILD CARD SERIES: PADRES VS METS

October 7, 2022

Juan Soto

Citi Field

San Diego Padres

Pregame Press Conference

Q. Juan, you had that experience back in 2019, an incredible postseason experience. How does that prepare you for this, and what did you learn from that time that you can take into this experience now?

JUAN SOTO: Just the same thing. Try to control the momentum. Don't try to speed up the game, try to control it. Stay calm and do what you know to do. Do whatever you came to do and what you've been doing all year.

Q. You had a great finish to the season, hitting over .300 for the last three weeks. You've mentioned before that you have a lot of experience playing against the Mets, you love to play this team. How prepared do you feel to make an impact in this postseason swinging the way that you have and playing a team that you've had success against?

JUAN SOTO: I've been playing pretty well the last couple of days. I'm just going to bring that. I never think about my numbers in this stadium or anything like that. I'm just thinking I've got to come play and try to beat them, try to do my best to beat them.

I've been having a little bit of success against this team, and I'm proud of it. I'm going to keep trying to do the same thing.

Q. As far as your matchup with Max Scherzer, you guys have had a great relationship. You talked about what you learned from him, being a teammate of his. Did you get a chance to talk to him before this series, or are you guys combatants now, batter versus pitcher?

JUAN SOTO: No, I didn't get the chance to talk to him, but I bet he don't want to talk to me at all. I face him through the year, and he don't even look at my face.

I respect that. He's really concentrating on his game. He's not worrying about if we're friends or not. We're friends outside of the field, and he just came in to do his stuff. So I respect that.

For my way, same thing. I won't be scared to shuffle him.

Q. Juan, now that you look back on the trade and everything, just how difficult was it to kind of get traded away from the only team you ever knew and come across the country? And when did you start to feel comfortable, like it was normal that you're a San Diego Padre?

JUAN SOTO: It was really tough the first two, three days. I couldn't believe it. It was really tough. I was a National, and I was thinking I would spend my life there. They show me it is what it is. It's a business. We've just got to go through it.

I think since the first day I get to San Diego, all my teammates and coaches and everybody make me feel like home. Around a week, I was already feeling I was there for the whole year.

So I feel pretty comfortable. I'm proud of my teammates and my coaches, all the people that are in that clubhouse. They've been great the whole year. They made me feel at home right away. That's one of the most important things.

Q. Juan, just piggy-backing off of that, how long did it actually take you to get comfortable in the lineup and on the field because last time -- one of the last times I saw you, you were in Arizona. You were struggling to get over .200 as a Padre. What was the growth experience like for you just adapting to a different offense and being in a different situation?

JUAN SOTO: I think it is what it is. We're humans. We struggle. We have tough times. Whenever I get to this team, it's a way better lineup and it's a way different way how they pitch you as it was in the Nationals.

They pitched me really different. I was playing another division that I face every year, but I didn't get to face all those guys. Now I get to see them and face them a lot.

It was a little bit tough, but we've got to get used to it and keep moving forward, and that's what I did. I forget about my numbers and everything. I just get to grind every day and try to help my team. If I got to get a runner in or get him, I will do it any way.

Q. Before you were traded, you turned down a sizable offer from the Nationals. Now what do you think the market's going to be like for a guy like Judge in the off-season?

JUAN SOTO: I don't know about Judge. I worry about my stuff. I'm Juan Soto. I'm here to worry about my stuff, and my stuff is go out there and play baseball. Forget about everything else. Just go out there, play, and try to bring a championship to San Diego.

Q. Juan, when you first came to San Diego, who were some of the guys on the team that made you feel welcome, made you feel at home?

JUAN SOTO: Manny and Pro and Alfaro, all those guys that were around me. They were really cool, and they were telling me how the team works over here and everything.

Manny is the most important thing because he's kind of like the captain of the team. So if the captain makes you feel comfortable, that's a huge thing. He was just telling me how the teams work in there and how we've got to be. I think I was agreeing with mostly everything that was going on in there, and I feel good with it.

Q. Juan, one thing the Padres have struggled with this season is consistently producing offense and runs. First of all, what gives you confidence that you guys can turn that on when it matters most in the playoffs, especially when you're going to face Scherzer and maybe potentially deGrom, two of the best in the game?

JUAN SOTO: Because we have a great lineup. I mean, we have a great lineup, you see from the 1st batter all the way to the 9th hitter, there's some guys that can do damage. We're never going to give up.

I know the pitching that we have, and we trust on them. It's all about our offense, and we've just got to get it going.

Q. Juan, what do you like about playing here in New York?

JUAN SOTO: I mean, a lot of family is over here, so I want to make them proud and I want to make them to enjoy the game. So I just come in to play for them and try to do my best.

Q. That is something that you think about when you come here, that you'll be playing in front of them? What's cool about that?

JUAN SOTO: Yeah, I mean, definitely. Through all my Minor League systems and everything, a lot of them, they don't get the chance to see me, and whenever I come here and they get the chance to see me, it's just I feel proud of myself and just give me joy.

For me, I think family is everything, family is first, and whenever I see them, I want to play well for them.

Q. You said Manny is like the captain. Now that you've played with him for two months, what have you learned about him that maybe you didn't know before, and what's kind of surprised you about him?

JUAN SOTO: I mean, his leadership and everything, he was commanding the team that way and getting the team and getting everybody going. He's impressive what he's doing in there, things that we can't say over here, but he's been doing great, great leader, and he's put an example.