Juan Soto will be playing in the All-Star game on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium.
He may be a member of the home team in the future.
The Washington Nationals star turned down a huge contract extension to stay with the team for the rest of his career. He would have been the highest paid player in baseball history. Other plans were in the works. Mike Trout, who is playing out his 12-year, $426 million deal with the Angels, cares about winning.
The Nationals made a run to the World Series. One of the most shocking World Series runs in MLB history happened when they beat the Astros. In the World Series, he hit three homers, two of which were go-ahead ones.
The team wasn't happy in 2020. Ownership blew it up in 2020.
Everyone was available except for their young star.
The Los Angeles Dodgers were able to take advantage of the garage sale. The Dodgers were poised to go back-to-back while fighting with the San Francisco Giants in the NL West. They traded their top two prospects and two other prospects to the Nationals. They got the prize of the trade deadline in Max Scherzer, as well as All-Star infielder Trea Turner.
The Dodgers showed no fear of trading young talent from their loaded farm system and also showed no fear of trading for guys they would need to pull out the checkbooks for in the future. Turner had another year on his contract and will be up for an extension in a few months.
As the Nationals were in the early stages of a rebuild, rumors swirled about a possible deal involving Soto. He was going to be a free agent in the 25th year of the century.
The rumors were quickly shot down by the Nats GM.
The narrative may have changed dramatically on Saturday.
With the trade deadline just a few weeks away, the surprising rejection from Soto sent a clear message to the other 29 general managers.
The Nationals are open for business so get your packages ready.
The LA Times reported that an email was sent to MLB reporters with the subject line "Juan Soto Trade Odds." After the trade deadline, the Nationals were the favorites to have the catcher on their roster. The Dodgers were runners up.
Would the Dodgers unload their farm for a guy they would have to pay over $400 million for when they already have Betts and Freddie in contracts that pay them over $27 million a year?
Yes, the short answer. What is the long answer? It is as well.
The Dodgers have won trade deadline deals for superstars before. They have dealt with the Nationals and Scott Boras. The guy they got from the Nationals a year ago is also one of the DodgersTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkia
One of the greatest returns in MLB history is possible because the Dodgers have more than enough talent to make a deal. Guys in the Majors could headline the package, while top prospects Bobby Miller, Diego Cartaya, orMiguel Vargas could help. The Nationals would love to get any combination of those players to jump start their rebuild, while the Dodgers would love to get any of those players to stay.
He is already a two-time All-Star, a two-time member of the All-MLB First- Team, the 2020 NL batting champion, and the 2021 NLMVP runner-up. He has the second-best on- base percentage through age 23 in the Modern Era at.427, only behind Ted Williams.
The Dodgers won the World Series at the beginning of the season. The Dodgers have the best record in the NL and are second best in baseball. They have opened up a 9.5 game lead in the NL West. Even with their loaded injured list and first-half struggles, they look like the clear favorites to win the NL.
The Dodgers don't need to make a farm-clearing move for him. Why wouldn't they take the chance?
The Dodgers have proven time and time again that if they feel like they can dramatically improve their roster, and set themselves up to win a World Series in the immediate and future, they won't hesitate. This time should be the same.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
