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The Washington Nationals will consider trading Juan Soto this month after he rejected a 15-year, $440 million offer recently made, according to four people familiar with the matter. Soto, a 23-year-old superstar, can reach free agency after the 2024 season, meaning the Nationals can keep him through this season and the two after that. But doubts about keeping him long-term have prompted the club to at least submit trade offers ahead of the August 2 deadline.
The Nationals’ most recent offer came near the start of July, according to two people familiar with the timing. It does not include deferral of payments, according to two people familiar with the terms, as was the case with the offers to Soto in November and May. After the Athletics reported the numbers and the Nationals’ intentions on Saturday, Soto was disappointed that the situation — and the uncertainty surrounding it — was made public.
“I feel very bad to see things turn out like this because I’m a person who keeps everything on his side. I keep everything quiet,” Soto said before Saturday’s game against the Atlanta Braves, a 6-3 loss that ended after a 109-minute rain delay in the eighth game. Soto doubled and scored on a Josh Bell triple. But even with five hits between Soto and Bell, the Braves went ahead with back-to-back home runs by Matt Olson and Austin Riley against Paolo Espino in the third. The Nationals (30-63) have dropped nine in a row, 15 of their last 16 and are 1-14 in July.
“I weigh everything and try to keep it fair [to] me,” Soto continued. “But you just [made] the decision and they do what they have to do.’
“When things like that come out that are personal, it bothers people. I’m sure it bothers him a lot,” manager Dave Martinez said after Soto hinted that the organization had expired the offer. “But he’s got to understand that’s part of the game, right? We’ve all been through it at some point.”
While $440 million would be the largest contract in sports history by total value, the annual value of $29.3 million would rank 20th. Soto is looking for both double-digit years and an annual average that is significantly higher, according to multiple people familiar with his camp’s thinking. When Trout signed his extension with the Angels in March 2019, he was 27 and set records for total value ($426.5 million) and AAV (about $36 million). Trout remains baseball’s highest-paid player.
The Nationals are not expected to increase their offer anytime soon, according to two people familiar with the negotiations. Soto’s side has not tabled a counteroffer, according to three people familiar with the discussions. And another big factor, of course, is a potential ownership change and whether buyers would prefer to make their own decisions about trading Soto before control of his team expires or a mega deal is reached.
“I mean, at the end of the day, you get what you deserve. We all know that,” Martinez said of what he plans to tell Soto. “And for me, I hope it’s here. Because I love the child. I never think of him as anything but a citizen of Washington.
Shortly before Soto spoke Saturday, a veteran teammate asked a club official if he had any extra Soto T-shirts to give to his children. A few hours later, fans in attendance received Soto’s Star Wars themed bobblehead. On Monday, he will participate in the Home Run Derby at Dodger Stadium. On Tuesday, he will be the only player representing the last-place Nationals in the All-Star Game.
Soto has long been the main attraction here. He would be elsewhere too. By many measures, he is one of the most exciting players in baseball, one of the best hitters and one of the best franchise-building candidates. But as he’s proven to be a generational talent, the specter of the open market — and his agent Scott Boras’ track record of taking most clients there — has loomed over any discussion of his future in Washington.
After the Nationals made the 15-year offer, Soto and general manager Mike Rizzo met at Nationals Park, according to three people who declined to share details of the conversation. That was right before Rizzo and Martinez exercised their options for next year, easing some instability around the team. Otherwise, talks have been held with Soto with Lerner’s family considering selling the club – and with a terrible first half on the pitch expected to lead to another sell-off at the deadline.
On July 1, Soto was open to further contract discussions, telling The Washington Post that he would forgo the chance to become a free agent if the numbers were right. Then on Saturday, in his darkest moment with reporters, he echoed those sentiments in less convincing fashion. At that point, before another loss, the Nationals were 27 games behind the first-place New York Mets in the National League East (and 14½ back of the fourth-place Miami Marlins). The Braves would soon hit their 30th and 31st home runs in 12 games against Washington. So fitting, it poured too.
“For me, this is the team that I’ve been [with] since what 2015?” Soto said. “I’ve been with this team and I feel good about it. When I get to know the city more, I feel great. Why should I change?”
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