San Diego Padres first baseman Eric Hosmer held all the power in the Juan Soto trade, until he didn’t.
The Nationals and Padres agreed to a trade for Juan Soto and Josh Bell. Originally, it appeared Hosmer was in the deal, but the San Diego first baseman has a no-trade clause, thus complicating things.
Hosmer doesn’t want to be a Washington National, it would appear. Barring a late change of heart, Hosmer will have to be dealt elsewhere.
The Juan Soto deal is done with the #Padres, and does NOT include Eric Hosmer.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) August 2, 2022
San Diego #Padres 1B Eric Hosmer has NOT approved the trade to Washington. The #Nats are on his no-trade list. It remains to be seen if he changes his mind.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) August 2, 2022
When Soto was informed by the Nationals he's moving, it was immediately clear some version of the deal will get done. The Padres knew that Eric Hosmer had Washington on his no-trade list and could invoke it. There are always different iterations.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 2, 2022
The point: The deal will happen. https://t.co/TFH8vob1p4
The San Diego first baseman’s contract is not favorable, which would explain the Padres decision to offload him at the trade deadline. Sending him to Washington in the same deal they picked up Bell would be perfect. Unfortunately for them, Hosmer wasn’t down with that plan.
Padres: Eric Hosmer held all the power in Juan Soto trade
Hosmer is locked into a contract that pays him $13 million over each of the next three seasons. When said deal is up, he’ll be 35 years old, and he’s not nearly the player he used to be when he won the World Series with the Kansas City Royals.
By no means is he unplayable, however. Hosmer is slashing .272/.336/.392. He’s shown moderate power this season and is certainly a good enough first baseman for a non-contending team.
San Diego and Preller considers themselves a World Series contender, though, which makes Bell a far better option.
Soto is one of the best hitters in all of baseball, and has been coined the next Ted Williams for a reason. The Pads will find a way to get this trade done, with or without Hosmer attached.