"It shocked me, and it feels really painful" - When Juan Soto was heartbroken after Washington Nationals' $440M contract extension offer got leaked
During the 2022 season, the Washington Nationals were looking to lock down Juan Soto for the future. He was the club's young star who they were excited about and starting to build around.
The Nats were ready to offer the slugger a $440 million extension when that offer got leaked to the media. It made for a tough situation as both sides lost any leverage.
Soto was certainly not pleased when he got news of the leak. He explained his feelings, via Bleacher Report's Tyler Conway.
"We tried to keep it as private as we can, and this number just came out. ... it was pretty tough," said Soto.
Soto wanted to keep things behind closed curtains. However, as fans have seen throughout the years, these talks have come to light in the media.
"It was uncomfortable. I was trying to get things private, keep talking and all that kind of stuff, but they just throw that number out there. It feels really uncomfortable. It really shocked me, and it feels really painful," said Soto.
Soto felt hurt and betrayed by the leak. It was leaked directly by the club to help give them more leverage, but it backfired on them immediately.
The Nationals' leak led to Juan Soto's trade
While the Nationals tried to gain leverage, they lost it all with their decision. Juan Soto took the club's decision to heart, and it was a big reason why he is not in Washington today.
Washington traded Soto to the San Diego Padres not long after. He and Josh Bell were acquired for MacKenzie Gore, Robert Hassell III, C.J. Abrams, James Wood, and Jarlin Susana.
It was a giant deal that instantly made San Diego contenders. Soto would be teammates alongside Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado.
However, the Padres could not get the job done, and with his contract expiring soon, they wanted out. They traded the slugger to the New York Yankees ahead of the 2024 season.
In his sole season in the Bronx, Soto was exceptional. He played in 157 regular season games, hitting .288/.419/.569 with a career-high 41 home runs and 109 runs batted in.
Now, he is the hottest free agent this winter and has already started making his rounds. It will be interesting to see which team can sign the four-time All-Star.