Juan Soto: A Lock To Be Traded By Padres?

Juan Soto: A Lock To Be Traded By Padres?

Has Juan Soto played his final game for the San Diego Padres? That’s certainly what MLB insiders want you to believe. Soto was almost dealt at the trade deadline and now it appears that things are tending in that direction once again.

ESPN’s Buster Olney had this to say on The Michael Kay Show on Friday:

“100 percent he’s going to be traded before the season.”

Olney added, “That’s one where [Padres GM] A.J. Preller and Scott Boras are coming out and say ‘no, that’s not the case.’ All you have to do is look at the math. If, in fact, the Padres are going to get their payroll down to $200 million, to $220, which would be a massive reduction, they’re going to have to make a move with Soto.”

It’s worth noting that Olney has been wrong before and he’s a total clown. That guy isn’t good at anything beyond being a Yankees jock sniffer.

I will also add that Alden Gonzalez of ESPN wrote the same thing. This one is behind a paywall so don’t bother clicking. This is what you need to know.

“I don’t think they have much of a choice, honestly,” one rival GM told ESPN.

As ESPN notes, “The Padres are not in compliance with Major League Baseball’s debt-service ratio, a mandate within the collective bargaining agreement that essentially prevents teams from taking on too much debt.”

Soto may very well be moved but I don’t think they’re telling the full story. The Padres are in debt and are basically forced to reduce payroll. That doesn’t necessarily mean they have to trade Soto.

Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr., Xander Bogaerts, Yu Darvish, Ha-Seong Kim, and Joe Musgrove all have large contracts that can be moved via trade. Frankly, even if Soto gets moved, one of those players could still be traded.

Really the only certainty is that it seems like there will be a bit of a fire sale going on in San Diego. Not that this should be viewed as surprising. AJ Preller doesn’t have a single clue what he’s doing. I’ll never understand why that guy still has a job.

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