Yankees’ diehard fans can’t imagine Juan Soto gone: ‘Why would you want to leave this?’

NEW YORK — Juan Soto waited. Then he waited some more. Then after Gerrit Cole went through his windup and threw a pitch, Soto turned and saluted the Bleacher Creatures, who had been chanting his name for 15 seconds during the “Roll Call” that’s become tradition at the start of every game at Yankee Stadium.

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

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

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

Why?

“When we do the roll call,” Ousland said, “he milks it.”

For Soto, it may have just been another day at the office, collecting three hits including a double in the Yankees’ 6-5 win over the Kansas City Royals in Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Saturday night.

All season, Soto has been showered with love from the crowd at Yankee Stadium as he’s put up career numbers that include a personal-best 41 home runs. Since the All-Star break, that’s included constant chants of “Re-sign Soto” — 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 will be the talk of the offseason.

But Soto said Saturday did feel a little different.

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

Here was Juan Soto’s first playoff Roll Call.

He appeared to soak it in a little. pic.twitter.com/hRgIk4Pprx

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

For the Bleacher Creatures, they just hope that when Soto and his agent, Scott Boras, are weighing offers this offseason that could reach into the $500 million range, the love they have shown him helps tip the scales in the Yankees’ favor.

Even if it’s just the littlest bit.

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

Chapin, a Manhattan resident, wore a small camera attached to the brim of his Yankees cap when he led the “Roll Call” on Saturday. He’s had season tickets since 1999, back when the Yankees played at the old stadium.

He’s convinced that Soto loves the Bleacher Creatures like they love him.

“We love player interaction,” he said. ‘These guys are very hyped. They love the ‘Roll Call.’ We love the ‘Roll Call.’ Obviously, he’s one of the best hitters in baseball. He loves it here, you can tell.”

Nanette Simmons is a Brooklyn native who recently beat Stage 3 breast cancer. She’s been going to Yankees games for more than 20 years and was among the thousands chanting “Re-sign Soto” as the 25-year-old jogged out to right field before the first inning Saturday.

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

Yet Simmons was skeptical.

“I would love for him to stay and I would hope he stays and not 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 believed Soto loves Yankees fans, but that wasn’t all he loves.

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

Lopez referenced the Yankees’ last high-profile free agent pursuit: Aaron Judge.

Judge was drafted by the Yankees in 2013 and he became the face of the franchise when he hit an American League-best 52 homers as a rookie. The Yankees even created a section of seating for him in right field called “The Judge’s Chambers.” But Judge became a free agent after the 2022 season, and he flirted hard with the San Francisco Giants and the 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’s going to be the same thing. Are they willing to put up the money to pay him?”

So far, the Yankees seem like a sure bet to be among Soto’s most serious suitors.

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

Soto, however, has been reticent to give hints about what he’s thinking.

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

“Re-sign Soto” chants have broken out in Wrigley 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 wasn’t thinking about it, though just weeks ago, after homering in Seattle to give him one home run in all 30 active major-league stadiums, he brought up his free agency unprompted.

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

In that moment, it was difficult to tell whether the impression the fans at Yankee Stadium had left a lasting mark on him or if he would be OK simply relegating them to memory, just like the fans who adored him with the Washington Nationals and the San Diego Padres.

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

“It’s the greatest franchise in sports,” Ousland said. “We’ve got enough money. We’ve got the greatest fans in sports. The atmosphere is unmatchable. Why would you want to leave this?

“I don’t want to disrespect the (New York) Mets. If he wants to go play for the Mets or some other team for a little bit more money … I can’t see it happening. I feel really confident that he’s coming back. I think he loves playing with Judge. Look at his numbers. It’s not a coincidence that he’s having his best year of his career hitting in front of Judge and that pitchers are pitching to him. Why would he want to leave that?”

Ousland stopped. He had one more thought.

“If he hits in the playoffs,” he said, “they better sign him.”

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