The San Diego Padres and New York Yankees, two teams that failed to advance to the postseason despite investing a large amount of money in the 2023 season, are discussing trade. At the center is outfielder Juan Soto.도메인
SNY, a New York sports media outlet, cited sources on the 26th (Korean time) and reported that the two clubs discussed a trade focusing on Soto’s transfer.
They added that these discussions are still in the early stages and that there has been no progress in trade discussions.
Although it is still in the early stages, there appears to be room for trade discussions between the two sides to progress.
The Yankees need hitters, especially left-handed hitters. Soto is one of the players who fits perfectly here.
San Diego needs a change of atmosphere. The possibility of Soto being traded as a free agent after the 2024 season has been steadily raised.
SNY predicted that Soto may change teams if the ‘right deal’ is reached, citing an executive from another team.
This means that San Diego has not put Soto on the trade market, but that does not mean they have completely ruled out the possibility of a move.
General manager AJ Preller previously said in an interview with local media regarding Soto’s trade, “We are not a group that says ‘no’ to anything. “That’s how we run the team.”
Soto is a proven hitter who is a three-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger.
His last season saw him appear in all 162 games, batting average of 0.275, on-base percentage of 0.410, slugging percentage of 0.519, 35 home runs and 109 RBI.
He is a player that every team would want, but the problem is that he has one year left in his possession period. It is unclear how much sacrifice the teams seeking to recruit him will make. The prevailing expectation is that San Diego will receive at least less than the price paid when recruiting him.
San Diego recruited him and Josh Bell in August 2022, giving away minor league prospects such as Robert Hassell, Harleen Susana, and James Wood, as well as infielder CJ Abrams, left-hander MacKenzie Gore, and infielder Luke Voit.