Former Padres reliever Heath Bell calls for Friars to trade 3x All-Star Juan Soto
Less than a year on from his highly-publicized trade to the San Diego Padres, some people are calling on the club to move on from Juan Soto.
It has been a turbulent 12 month period for Soto. He went from rejecting an offer worth nearly half a billion dollars (15-years, $440 million), to languishing in fourth-place with the San Diego Padres.
One man seems to think it is time for the organization to cut their losses. Former All-Star pitcher Heath Bell believes the Padres need to build for the future without the outfielder.
"I think you get rid of Soto...It's not working. Soto is getting on base but nobody is hitting the ball...The guy doesn't steal bases," said Bell
The Friars gave up a ton of prospects to bring the highly rated Dominican to Southern California. Luke Voit, C.J Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, Robert Hassle III, James Wood and Jarlin Susana were all shipped off to the Washington Nationals as part of the trade package for Soto.
Former #Padres All-Star Heath Bell thinks the Friars should consider trading Juan Soto at the trade deadline.
Do you agree? https://t.co/UalCljhNlI
"Former #Padres All-Star Heath Bell thinks the Friars should consider trading Juan Soto at the trade deadline. Do you agree?" - Borna Nazari
Bell spent five seasons with the Padres between 2007-2011. He went on to play in 354 games, finishing with a 2.53 ERA.
The All-Star reliever went on to name Blake Snell and Josh Hader as two other players that should be traded to build a competitive team for 2024.
Outfielder Juan Soto is set to become a free agent at the end of the 2024 season
The Padres have invested heavily over the last 12 months to lock up some of their key players to long-term deals. Juan Soto is not one of those players.
@TalkinBaseball_ Manny Machado hopes that Juan Soto gets a contract extension next 👀
🎥 @TalkinBaseball_
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"Manny Machado hopes that Juan Soto gets a contract extension next @TalkinBaseball_" - Sporting News MLB
The club recently signed Manny Machado to a massive 11-year, $350 million extension. Xander Bogaerts signed a 11-year, $280 million deal in the offseason. The club has also commited to Fernado Tatis Jr., Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove.
The decision to not offer Soto an extension could be linked to his underwhelming numbers. The lefty slugger is slashing .272/.426/.490 on the year and has recorded 15 home runs and 47 RBIs.
The San Diego Padres record on July 7 last year was 48-36. Exactly one year later, they are 41-46 and desperatly trying to stay relevant in the playoff picture. It is safe to say the move for Soto has not turned out as planned.