ANAHEIM -- It was a few simple words, punctuated by two comet emojis akin to the flight of a baseball: “Let’s have some fun.”

On Friday, before facing off against the Angels and Mike Trout, Nationals superstar Juan Soto quote tweeted Trout with that four-word message. Because Soto, throughout five dominant years in the big leagues, has built his brand on fun.

It was Soto’s first time stepping foot in Angel Stadium. First time facing off against Trout and Shohei Ohtani, two fellow baseball moguls. First time playing on the same diamond as former teammate Anthony Rendon since the third baseman signed with Los Angeles in 2019.

So pregame, Soto doubled down.

“I think it’s going to be fun,” he said.

It was not.

In a 3-0 loss in which the Nationals collected all of three hits off Angels starter Jhonathan Diaz -- just his fourth appearance in the Major Leagues and first this season -- Soto went 0-for-3 with a walk, two strikeouts, and two corresponding outbursts.

“I’ve seen him do that many times, where he chases a bad pitch and gets frustrated, because he usually doesn’t do it,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said postgame. “Just a tough night for him.”

Martinez said before the game, facing off against a star-studded roster, that he wanted Soto to simply be himself. And himself Soto was, bouncing up out of the box and swaying his hips in his customary Soto Shuffle.

“Soto just has that thing he does … I think that’s part of Soto’s gig,” Angels manager Joe Maddon said postgame.

After a first-inning lineout, each subsequent Soto at-bat became a masterclass in dramatic tension. It started in the third inning with a cocked head at a check-swing strike call; two pitches later, Diaz brushed Soto back with an extra-inside changeup, sending the All-Star right fielder stumbling away down the first-base line.

With a 3-2 count, Soto took a fastball outside for ball four, flinging his bat to the side and strutting up the line -- meeting Diaz’s eyes in a withering three-second stare.

“It was very emotional … that’s just the way he plays,” Diaz said. “But I won.”

In the fifth inning, the cat-and-mouse game resumed. Soto fouled off a 1-1 pitch into the stands and tracked it, stepping out of the box and circling his way around like a shark smelling blood. But on the very next offering, he swung through an 82 mph Diaz slider, pounding his bat into home plate in frustration.

His final plate appearance, Soto was called out on a full-count offering from Aaron Loup that nicked the inside corner. In disgust, he feigned slamming his bat down again, walking over to home plate umpire Chad Whitson and exchanging a few words.

“I can’t go out there and argue with the umpire until I see what’s going on, but they were close pitches,” Martinez said. “Juan’s just got to forget about it and get ready for tomorrow.”

In a bright spot on a night that offered few, Soto was shown chatting with Rendon on the Angels' broadcast, the two all smiles in a reunion of the most formidable bats on the championship-winning 2019 Nationals.

The two have kept in touch with occasional texts since Rendon’s departure, and the third baseman said he “wasn’t surprised” at Soto’s growth.

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“I saw him when I was in Double-A, when I was in rehab, before he even came up, and he was impressive back then. He was just like a man amongst boys,” Rendon said. “So it’s also just kinda [cool] to see that transition with him, being in the Minors, and then coming up with us his rookie year and then that run. Then leaving and seeing him continue that success, even if the team itself isn’t doing what they want to do.”

Martinez shrugged off Soto’s struggles postgame.

“He’ll come back tomorrow,” the manager said. “Juan’s good about forgetting what happened and jumping back in there the next day, getting a few hits.”

So perhaps that fun will be had on Saturday.