Juan Soto Immerses Himself In English

Juan Soto was traded from the San Diego Padres to the New York Yankees. Baseball fans will remember that Soto originally signed with the Washington Nationals in 2015. He quickly joined the Nationals’ Dominican Academy and immediately began to immerse himself in English by using the Rosetta Stone language-learning software lessons. 

Soto initially practiced English for one hour a day, five days a week. After the Dominican Academy, Soto joined the Nationals’ Class A affiliate, the Hagerstown Suns. He met Suns catcher Tres Barrera, who was born in Texas to Mexican parents. Soto told Barrera that he only wanted the two of them to converse in English.

Barrera told the Washington Post that he remembered how Soto would go to a McDonald’s near the Hagerstown ballpark every day to practice his English by ordering from the menu. When Soto was called up to the Nationals, he told manager Dave Martinez, “No Spanish, only English.”

Soto himself also recalled the role that his mother played in his English lessons. “I remember her telling me that if I wanted to be a star, I had to know the language in the country I wanted to play in,” he reflected. “She was right. Moms always are!”