Juan Soto rumors are topping the charts this week in baseball and this is what it would take for each National League East team to land him.
The Juan Soto rumors are flowing like champagne on New Year’s Eve. For baseball fans, the next few days could feel like the end-of-the-year holiday. The MLB trade deadline will be what everyone is talking about regardless of where your favorite team is in the standings.
No topic is hotter than the Juan Soto rumors. Where will the Washington Nationals superstar land? Could he possibly stay in the National League East?
As unlikely as some teams within the division are to acquire him, everyone has their best trade package to land him. What will it take for the other four clubs in the NL East to land Soto?
Juan Soto rumors: The best trade package from the Atlanta Braves
What is it that the Atlanta Braves would have to give up for Juan Soto? Let’s put together a nice big package to bring him to Atlanta.
The full trade would not only include Juan Soto and Patrick Corbin going to Atlanta but end up with Kyle Muller, Bryce, Elder, Vaughn Grissom, Jesse Franklin, William Contreras, and Ian Anderson all heading to the Nationals.
In this trade, the Braves give up their number one (Kyle Muller), two (Bryce Elder), four (Vaugh Grissom), and eight (Jesse Franklin) prospects along with 2022 All-Star William Contreras and starting pitcher Ian Anderson. It’s quite a haul for the Nationals who gain two minor league pitchers, a future shortstop, and two guys they can immediately build with on the big league roster.
None of the Braves prospects are considered top 100 guys but Contreras and Anderson are two young players that should entice the Nationals. They are young enough to fall into a similar class as some of the best prospects in baseball.
And because the Nationals aren’t getting any top 100 guys, the Braves have to take on Patrick Corbin’s contract.
The Braves can replace Contreras with a more defensive-focused catcher to go behind Travis d’Arnaud. They should already be in the market to upgrade over Anderson for this season so they’d solve that hole in a separate trade.
The Braves outfield would become some combination of Soto, Ronald Acuna Jr., and Michael Harris. It’ll be hard to find a better young trio in the game.
If that return seems like a lot, keep in mind the Nats would be dealing Soto in the division, to a team that will dominate them for years to come. Now does it make more sense?
Juan Soto rumors: The best trade package from the Philadelphia Phillies
Odds aren’t in favor of the Philadelphia Phillies trading for Juan Soto. They already signed Bryce Harper, the original Nationals’ Soto, when he hit free agency. But let’s imagine what it might take.
The full trade includes Juan Soto and Patrick Corbin going to the Phillies for prospects Andrew Painter (53), Mick Abel (55), and Logan O’Hoppe (88) plus Bryson Stott, Darick Hall, Alec Bohm, Mickey Moniak, and Ranger Suarez.
It’s a lot to digest. The Nationals do get three better prospects than what Atlanta has to offer. However, the major leaguers have a few more questions.
Stott, Bohm, and Moniak have all been disappointments as big leaguers for the Phillies. However, one would have to think someone like Stott could turn things around positively in Washington. Hall is hardly a prospect but someone the Nationals could be intrigued by given his early big league success this season.
Suarez could actually turn into the one major league player the Nationals like the most. He is a big part of the Phillies rotation this year and young so snagging him would be a great addition.
The Phillies, in need of something else, would be unwise to make such a move. More so, the Nationals would probably want more sure things.
Juan Soto rumors: The best trade package from the Miami Marlins
Imagine Juan Soto getting traded to the Miami Marlins. Crazier things have happened. This is the same organization that has twice won the World Series then sold off all of their pieces within two years after. What would it take for them to land Soto?
The full trade would, again, include Patrick Corbin and Juan Soto going to Miami for the Marlins’ top prospects including Eury Perez (15), Max Meyer (21), Kahlil Watson (50), and JJ Bleday (number four in the system, not top 100). They also give up promising young starters Trevor Rogers and Pablo Lopez in the deal. If the Marlins play ball, perhaps Jesus Sanchez could also be in the mix.
The Nationals completely rebuild their pitching staff in this trade. The Marlins manage to hold onto a couple of promising young arms and put themselves in a position to be a lot better if they’re willing to spend the money in free agency.
This is probably the best deal Washington could get. Unfortunately, the Marlins aren’t going to make the trade because there is no chance they pay Soto the record money he seeks.
Juan Soto rumors: The best trade package from the New York Mets
The NL East team most connected to the ongoing Juan Soto rumors, the New York Mets are the most reasonable destination for him to land even if they are rumored to have taken a hard stance against paying the ransom. What will they have to give up in order to make this franchise-altering trade?
The complete trade would have the team’s top four prospects Francisco Alvarez (2), Brett Baty (20), Ronny Mauricio (52), and Alex Ramirez (87) plus Khalil Lee and Jose Butto going to Washington along with pitchers Tylor Megill and David Peterson. All of this and the Mets get back Juan Soto plus Patrick Corbin’s horrendous contract.
The Mets can’t do what the other teams in the division can do and trade any good young players. They just don’t have very many of them other than Megill and Peterson. Even they aren’t established enough to be all that interesting to a team like Washington.
This trade is prospect heavy and would be able to outmatch what the Marlins could hypothetically give the Nationals. Alvarez headlines the trade as a possible superstar catcher the Nationals can put in their lineup every day and punish the Mets for making this move.
If it’s a prospect-heavy trade the Nationals are seeking, this one might beat the Marlins’ offer but with a lack of major league experience, they could be tempted to pivot toward Miami.
Many of New York’s best prospects have been traded over the last three seasons so it wouldn’t be impossible to imagine them doing something like this with the Nationals.