Many teams are looking for young talent, which perfectly fits the description of Juan Soto, who has been named as a possible trade target for many teams. The main obstacle now it seems, is the San Diego Padres might want to keep him after all.
Héctor Gómez, an MLB insider who has the inside scoop on many Dominican players, recently said on Twitter, "The Padres will make Juan Soto a very good contract extension offer. He has felt very good with the team. There is a very good chance for him to stay with them," after being asked if he thinks the Padres will extend Soto.
Soto has been one of the best players in 2023, with 35 home runs and 108 RBIs, but his main ability is walking, with 129. He has hit for .275, but with all the walks, his OBP is a shocking .409, making him one of the best players at creating runs.
Soto is currently on a 30-game on-base streak. In that span, he has hit .349 with a .463 OBP and a .697 slugging percentage. During that same period, he has hit 11 home runs and knocked in 32 RBIs.
What could a Juan Soto Extension look like for the Padres?
If the Padres can't re-sign Soto, they will, of course, trade him, with many teams interested. The Padres could ask for the top three prospects of any team's farm system.
The main problem with any extension for Soto is that it could cost between $35-40 million, and at just 24 years old, you would be looking at a 14 or 15-year contract that could exceed $600 million in value.
Soto is an MVP-type player who was robbed in 2021 when Bryce Harper won it, but Soto can elevate any team from a pretender to a contender, and the league knows that.
The Padres traded away Robert Hassell, Jarlin Susana, James Wood, CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, and Luke Voit for Soto. If they fail to adequately extend or trade him away, this could go down as one of the biggest regrets in MLB history.
