29 other teams would, in theory, love to acquire Juan Soto from the Washington Nationals. But four seem to be at the front of the line when it comes to trying to land the two-time All-Star.
In a piece for The New York Post, Jon Heyman writes that the St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and Texas Rangers "appear at the forefront of trade talks" with the Nationals for Soto.
The trade deadline this year is on Aug. 2, and Heyman adds that "someone connected to the talks said he absolutely believes" Soto will be traded between now and then.
Mike Rizzo and the Nationals are listening to offers on Soto after the 23-year-old declined a 15-year/$440 million extension offer earlier this month, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
Soto can't become a free agent until after the 2024 season, but if the Nationals don't believe that they will re-sign him, his trade value will only worsen as he gets closer to the open market. As many have also pointed out, if the Lerner family does indeed plan to sell the team, the last thing that a new ownership group wants to inherit is a former World Series hero that is probably going to be traded at the height of his powers.
After finishing runner-up in National League MVP voting a year ago, Soto is slashing .243/.400/.480 with 20 home runs, 45 RBIs, a league-leading 84 walks and an .880 OPS. It's scary to think how much Soto's numbers could improve if he is inserted back into a pennant race.
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