Juan Soto shines, Austin Wells homers twice in Yankees’ win

NEW YORK — Juan Soto grinned as the chants behind him grew louder in the fifth inning on Friday night, representing another pointed plea from the Yankees’ hardcore fans to the club’s decision-makers: “Re-sign Soto!” Pounding a fist into the pocket of his glove, Soto made eye contact with Aaron Judge in center field; the captain was grinning, too.

A potential free agent-to-be, Soto isn’t tipping his hand about the offseason, pointing those inquiries toward general manager Brian Cashman. But on the field, the relationship between Soto and the Bronx continues to exceed all expectations. The star outfielder contributed with his bat and arm, leading the Yankees to a 6-3 victory over the Cardinals at Yankee Stadium.

Soto laced a game-tying RBI double in the third inning as part of a 2-for-4 performance, also picking up an outfield assist by throwing out Alec Burleson attempting to stretch a single in the fifth inning. Austin Wells hit a pair of two-run homers, the first multihomer game of his career, as the Yanks improved their American League-best record to 79-56, bouncing back after dropping two of three games to the Nationals in Washington.

Marcus Stroman scattered nine hits over seven innings of two-run ball, walking none while striking out five. St. Louis scored both of its runs against him in the third inning as Stroman surrendered four consecutive hits, including run-scoring hits by Brendan Donovan and Paul Goldschmidt. Stroman’s seven innings were his most since May 31 at San Francisco (7 1/3).