Exclusive | Josue Shuffle? Top Dodgers prospect not mad at Juan Soto comp as star potential grows

CINCINNATI –– It was not a carbon copy.But observers couldn’t help but make the comparison.In the top of the fifth inning on Wednesday night, en route to drawing what was already his fifth walk in just four major-league games, top Dodgers prospect Josue De Paula took a low sinker from Reds left-hander Nick Lodolo –– then offered a reaction that had all sorts of shades of Juan Soto in it.The 21-year-old bent his knees and emphatically stretched his stance wide as the pitch went by.

He shook his head assuredly at what he was certain was a ball, the call eventually being confirmed on a failed Reds ABS challenge.De Paula didn’t exactly shuffle in the way Soto is notorious for doing, with the trademarked “Soto shuffle” becoming one of the defining traits of the New York Mets superstar and five-time All-Star slugger.But that didn’t stop many who watched the moment live –– including Dodgers broadcaster Joe Davis and MLB’s official X account –– from making the comparison in real time.“There’s a lot of Juan Soto there,” Davis said on the team’s SNLA broadcast.For De Paula, that’s not by accident.During his ascent as one of MLB’s top talents in recent years, following the Brooklyn-raised  prospect’s signing out of the Dominican Republic in 2022, De Paula has come to idolize fellow Dominican stars such as Soto and Elly De La Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds.Thanks to their shared representation with Boras Corporation, De Paula has been able to develop relationships with both of them, too, even sharing an embrace with De La Cruz behind the infield at Great American Ball Park before Monday’s series opener.De Paula said he has tried to take different parts from each of their games, specifically De La Cruz’s “electricness” and Soto’s plate discipline.Thus, even though De Paula wasn’t intentionally trying to copy Soto on Monday night, he joked he might have been subconsciously inspired nonetheless.“I wasn’t exactly trying to em...