Juan Soto Trade Rumors: Padres Want to Pair Nationals Star with Fernando Tatis Jr.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Juan Soto is available for trade after rejecting a 15-year, $440 million offer from the Washington Nationals.

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the San Diego Padres would like to have Soto and Fernando Tatis Jr.

The San Diego Padres, who have been full of surprises and thrills the past few years under GM A.J. Preller, might be an early favorite for Soto.

The package of prospects will cost a lot. He could potentially be given a $500 million contract extension by any team that wants him.

Spotrac says that San Diego has the fifth- highest payroll in baseball.

Two of the team's highest-paid players are Tatis, who is on a 14-year, $340 million deal, and Machado, who is on a 10-year, $300 million deal. Hosmer is on an eight-year, $144 million deal, while Darvish is on a six-year, $126 million contract.

It's not surprising that the Padres are considering the possibility of acquiring Soto.

One of the best players in the game is the Dominican and he has a bright future. He is a two-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger and a World Series winner.

He's batting.270 with 19 home runs and 42 runs scored in 89 games this season.

The Padres have never been shy about getting star players in order to win a World Series. Eric Hosmer, Mike Clevinger, and many others have been signed by them.

The San Diego Padres are in second place in the NL West with a 51-40 record. Adding Soto to the lineup would help close the gap.

The Nationals don't need to trade him this year if they don't get an offer they think is worthy because he is under team control through the 2024 campaign.

Unless the Padres come up with the right package, we could be waiting a long time.