Juan Soto’s return to the Bronx was supposed to be theatrics, right? New York Yankees fans had been anticipating this very moment since the offseason itself. They had their popcorn—and even the boos—ready. They weirdly even turned their backs, heckled, and waited for Soto to rise to the. Soto did tip his hat amid all the drama—but that’s it.

Instead of a fiery answer at the plate, all that fans got was a fizzle. Soto went 1-for-10 over the weekend. And even Aaron Judge was 3-for-12 with five strikeouts. The much-hyped showdown between what people last year called the Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth of this era was a total letdown.

It’s no surprise that backlash has followed. Brandon London dropped the mic, saying that the matchup was as dull as the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson match. “You know what, this Juan Soto vs. Aaron Judge matchup this past weekend was worse entertainment than watching Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson.” And honestly, it’s not hard to see why.

There was so much hype and all that buildup, and it landed with the excitement of a flat soda. London, in fact, even admitted that he was rooting for the chaos. He wanted Soto to torch his old team; instead, both stars barely even made a dent. Soto in particular had a moment in the eighth when the game was tied 2-2. He hit a routine grounder to DJ LeMahieu, who made a throw from his knees to get the out. But what stood out to fans was Soto’s lack of urgency to act. He didn’t sprint out—he simply jogged out of there. Even in such a hyped showdown, this was a swing and a miss in more ways than just one.

Instead, London lauded one person alone, and it’s Yankees manager Brian Cashman. After losing out on Soto this offseason, Cashman didn’t go hunting for a new Batman. He built a team full of Avengers—Paul Goldschmidt, Max Fried, and Cody Bellinger. And they didn’t just show up on Sunday; they took over. It was Bellinger, who stepped in the eighth inning and crushed a grand slam off Genesis Cabrera, and blew the game wide open. The final score was 8-2 Yankees, and they got the series win.

London summed it up best: “To beat the Dodgers in the World Series, it can’t be Batman and Robin to save the day. It has to be a team full of Avengers.” And based on how things have played out, it seems like Cashman has built exactly that.

Aaron Judge and Juan Soto’s quiet reunion overshadowed by boos 

Before Sunday’s Subway Series showdown, former Yankee teammates Judge and Soto shared a moment in the field. Soto, whom the Bronx Bombers had gotten from the Padres, had done plenty of damage alongside Judge in the Bronx last season. They were the duo pitchers simply feared, and they managed to get the New York Yankees back to World Series contention for the first time since 2009. Most thought Soto would be batting behind Judge for years to come. But that was clearly not the case.

Soto left for the crosstown rivals Mets for a whopping $765 million, just piercing the hearts of the Yanks. During free agency, Judge revealed that he didn’t even talk to Soto. But finally, at least in public, the duo had a brief chat, and Judge pulled back the curtains on that conversation. “Just said hello to him; I hadn’t seen him all series. Just kind of wishing him the best, kind of said, ‘Hey man, you’re the best in the game. Things like this are going to happen; just keep playing your game.’ It was good to see him. But happy we were able to either walk him or not let him do any damage, especially in this series.”

The Bronx crowd, though, showed him no mercy, with jeers raining down on him. The narrative went on about how maybe the hostility led to Soto not performing. But Mets manager Carlos Mendoza dismissed that notion. “This noise is new to him, but he’s an elite player. I think mentally he handled it well… it’s common to get booed.” Given that he is an elite performer, even this lackluster performance was not anticipated.

For now, the New York Yankees are happy with Cashman’s roster moves are proving smart.What do you think? Did the Yankees dodge a bullet with Soto? Let us know.