“The thought of adding Soto to a roster that is already a World Series contender has to be beyond tantalizing” - Mets may push for Juan Soto after extension talks fail, Soto posts cryptic video
Juan Soto and the Washington Nationals are in a very tough situation. Early in the season, it was rumored that Washington might trade Soto ahead of his contract year. These rumors died out, but now they are back and bigger than ever as Soto just declined an extension from the Nationals.
Breaking: The Nationals are open to hearing trade offers for Juan Soto after the star turned down a 15-year, $440 million offer that would have been the largest contract in baseball history, according to a report in The Athletic. https://t.co/AaIXBZ1rjG
"Breaking: The Nationals are open to hearing trade offers for Juan Soto after the star turned down a 15-year, $440 million offer that would have been the largest contract in baseball history, according to a report in The Athletic." - ESPN
On July 16, the Nationals offered Soto a 15-year deal worth $440 million, which would have been the largest contract in MLB history. However, Soto turned it down, looking to test his luck in 2024 free agency.
It is also possible that he turned the offer down because of the method the Nationals use to pay their players. With large contracts, Washington tends to defer the contract over a large period of time, often over 20 years.
Juan Soto is deserving of this amount of money, as he has established himself as one of the best players in baseball at just 23 years old. Although his numbers are somewhat down compared to last season, he is still batting .250 with a OPS over .900. He also already has 20 home runs and is leading the MLB in walks with 79 at the All-Star break.
Since he declined this offer, it seems like the Nationals are going to trade him, as they want to get value from him. A couple teams have been mentioned in talks, but the frontrunner appears to be the New York Mets. This would be an insane pickup for New York as they are already contenders this season.
"The thought of adding Soto to a roster that is already a World Series contender has to be beyond tantalizing. When you can make Juan Soto a Met, no one is untouchable."
Should the Mets make a franchise-altering trade for Juan Soto? (via @DannyAbriano) on.sny.tv/XuU6jWy https://t.co/Dv3Z3FUWvd
"The thought of adding Soto to a roster that is already a World Series contender has to be beyond tantalizing. When you can make Juan Soto a Met, no one is untouchable." Should the Mets make a franchise-altering trade for Juan Soto?" - SNY
It is nearly unheard of for a team as powerful as the New York Mets to add someone as great as Juan Soto at the trade deadline. It is likely that the Mets are going to have to trade their top prospects. This might include top catching prospect Francisco Alvarez, who has been very promising in Triple-A so far.
"When you can make Juan Soto a Met, no one is untouchable." This is what Mets insider Danny Abriano had to say on the potential trade and his words are true. The Mets should do everything in their power to acquire Soto.
Inside Juan Soto's epic career and his mysterious Instagram post
Even in his short career, Juan Soto has done much in the MLB. Since entering the league in 2018, Soto has a career .293 batting average and an insane .541 slugging percentage. He also already has 118 home runs and 563 hits in 555 games played. He was also the key component to Washington's magical 2019 World Series championship run at just 20 years old.
However, it looks like his time with the Nationals might end soon. Soto made this whole situation even more odd with his most recent post on Instagram. It suggests that he might want to leave Washington.
"Bloooommm day with some rose" - juansoto_25
The video appears to be normal on the surface with him showing off the Nationals City Connect jerseys. One of the lines in the song, however, says, "Hope they get me outta here." This might be a reach, but it is not uncommon for players to do things like this when they are unhappy with their current situation.
These next two weeks are going to be very interesting for Soto and Washington. They will also be interesting for the New York Mets as they continue to push for the young star. We may likely see Soto in orange and blue come this August.