Report: Juan Soto, Josh Bell Traded to Padres; Nationals to Get C.J. Abrams, More

According to Jon Morosi of MLB Network, the San Diego Padres have agreed to acquire Josh Bell from the Washington Nationals.

According to Jeff Passan, Washington will get C.J.Abrams, pitcher MacKenzie Gore, outfielder Robert Hassell III, outfielder James Wood, pitcher Jarlin Susana and another major leaguer.

The New York Post's Jon Heyman said Eric Hosmer could go to Washington in the deal.

Jon Heyman @JonHeyman

Eric Hosmer has been notified he’s in the agreed-upon deal. He has a no-trade and hasn’t consented yet. Belief is they will figure this out however, one way or another.

After the Nationals won the World Series, their contract status became the biggest storyline for the team. He could be the first player in Major League Baseball history to sign a $500 million contract when he hits free agency in 25 years.

Washington traded Trea Turner to the Los Angeles Dodgers before he could hit the open market, in order to get rid of BryceHarper, who was set to hit the open market. The idea was that the Nats couldn't let him go because he was so good.

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported on July 16 that he was going to be traded. Washington took the step after Soto turned down the offer.

While that would've been the largest contract ever in MLB in terms of overall value, it would've been lower than the average earnings for Mike Trout, Gerrit Cole, Francisco Lindor, andCorey Seager.

Stephen Strasburg's seven-year contract with the Nationals makes him the highest paid player on the team.

There was a mixture of resignation and indignation in the nation's capital.

Chase Hughes @ChaseHughesNBCS

Juan Soto should go down as an Alex Ovechkin-like figure in D.C., one of the greatest athletes in the city’s history. You don’t let generational talents like him go.

JP Finlay @JPFinlayNBCS

This Soto stuff is just so depressing. That parade feels like a different lifetime

Neil Greenberg @ngreenberg

IMO, Nats are paying the price (literally?) for losing their competitiveness. They have nothing to offer Soto except hope. No stars around him, a shaky pitching staff and big divisional spenders offer no guarantees of wins in the future.

All they can offer Soto is $$$

Alex Kirshner @alex_kirshner

Bailing on the next two years and looking to trade Soto now is some Mickey Mouse, Pittsburgh Pirates-type behavior by a franchise that just won a World Series. Gross

The Nationals could maximize their return if they moved Soto immediately.

Lindor and Betts had only one more year of team control, so they had to be traded for less than their worth. Soto is guaranteed to be a member of San Diego's roster for at least two-plus seasons, and that extra year can be used to buy more time to hammer out an extension.

This was almost a completely new area.

Jeff Passan @JeffPassan

Front offices are already having the conversations: What is it going to take to acquire Juan Soto in the wake of him turning down a 15-year, $440 million contract offer from the Nationals? And the answer is: The biggest trade package ever. “A Herschel Walker deal,” one GM said.

As much as this helps Washington's rebuild, it probably wouldn't have helped as much if Soto had re-signed. It would have made a lot of fans feel good about following the team during such a time.

San Diego almost didn't have enough money to make this trade happen.

Soto has a slash line of.289/.454/.538 and an on- base percentage of.966. Through his age-22 season, the five players closest in similarity to him are: Mike Trout, Mickey Mantle, Frank Robinson, and BryceHarper

The cover off the ball was torn off by him as a first baseman, and he hasn't stopped since. There is no reason for that to stop.

One player can raise his team's ceiling only so high, as is the case with Trout. The Padres are not the favorites to win the World Series solely because of this acquisition.

San Diego fans got a bit ahead of themselves when they predicted how the franchise would perform with Soto in the fold.

Three of the Padres' best players are under contract. It's possible that Soto re-signs and that Machado doesn't opt out of his contract.

The Padres were one of the most hidden teams in baseball. They were not notable for their futility.

Eric Show has more wins than any other pitcher in the history of the team. Only two players have gone into the Hall of Fame with the Padres, and they're Tony Gwynn andTrevorHoffman.

San Diego is trying to change its reputation. The signing of Hosmer signaled a new era in which the Padres would be willing to spend on talent. One year later, Fernando Tatis Jr.'s 14-year, $340 million extension was signed.

San Diego has a chance to have the best young combination of hitters in MLB with the trade of Soto.