Juan Soto traded to New York Yankees in blockbuster deal, San Diego Padres receive five players
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ByEurosport
Published 07/12/2023 at 12:02 GMT
The first major domino of the MLB off-season has fallen with Juan Soto traded from the San Diego Padres to the New York Yankees in one of the biggest moves so far. Soto was traded to San Diego by the Washington Nationals in July 2022 and helped the Padres reach the NL Championship series, but the team struggled in the 2023 season to recapture that form.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 24: Juan Soto #22 of the San Diego Padres rounds the bases after hitting a three-run home run against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at PETCO Park on September 24, 2023 in San Diego, California.
Image credit: Getty Images
The New York Yankees have acquired three-time All-Star Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres in the biggest deal of the off-season.
Soto, 25, was one of the hottest names of the off-season with the Padres rumoured to be open to trading the outfielder after a catastrophic 2023 season for the team and a payroll that was already north of $250 million.
The deal was confirmed on Wednesday evening with the Yankees also receiving Trent Grisham.
In return, the Padres got Michael King, Jhony Brito, Randy Vasquez, Drew Thorpe and Kyle Higashioka.
Soto is one of the best outfielders in the game and was traded to San Diego from the Washington Nationals in July 2022 after reportedly turning down a 15-year, €440 million extension.
The move comes quick on the heels of an inter-division trade by the Yankees to acquire Alex Verdugo from AL East rivals the Boston Red Sox.
Padres general manager A.J. Preller said it was hard for the team to trade a talent like Soto.
"If we did that, we wanted to make sure we shored up a bunch of needs," he said. "We were able to get some depth with quality.
"For us, we saw it as the potential to have three pennant races with Juan in play, and maybe more. But I think even from the time we made the deal - both internally, in baseball operations, myself with Peter Seidler at the time - we understood that you can also pivot.
“That's just part of having elite players is that there's always interest for elite players and premium-type talent. We understood that."
The next two big dominos to fall will be Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The latter is a 25-year-old pitcher who was posted to MLB in November after finishing up his time in Japan with the Orix Buffaloes.
Ohtani, meanwhile, is a three-time All-Star and widely regarded as one of the most unique players in the history of the game given his two-way status.
The latest reports of Ohtani’s hotly anticipated free agency after leaving the Los Angeles Angels suggest that the two-time American League MVP will make a decision by the end of the weekend.
The LA Dodgers are reportedly leading the way for his signature with the Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants and the Angels themselves reportedly in the mix.
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