MLB rumors: One Padres offer officially off the table for Yankees

Tuesday night saw the MLB's hot stove heating up, with the New York Yankees serving as main characters. After little movement came with the first two official days of Winter Meetings, Yankees GM Brian Cashman made sure to get things rolling.

He engaged with his new divisional rival, Boston Red Sox President of Baseball Operations Craig Breslow for the first move, acquiring outfielder Alex Verdugo.

The first logical question is how that trade would or would not impact the Yankees' highly telegraphed interest in Juan Soto. The answer? It wouldn't directly, given that the Yankees still expect to trade for Soto and have been noted to be discussing Soto openly as-if he's already a Yankee.

That may be a bit presumptuous, but for now, it seems as if a deal will go through.

There is one aspect of the deal that is likely no longer available, though.

One of Yankees possible trade acquisitions appears off the table

Jon Heyman points out that one Padres player, Trent Grisham, who was at one point discussed as a piece of the larger Soto trade is likely no longer of interest to the Yankees. That's because Verdugo fills one of the two outfield roles Cashman wants to fill, and Soto is supposed to fill the other.

Though the Verdugo acquisition may ring some alarm bells for Yankees fans who don't like that last year, he was under plenty of scrutiny for a lack of discipline in his play, Verdugo has much more offensive upside than Grisham, who batted 19 and 13 percent below the league OPS average last season.

Verdugo, for most of his years in MLB, has been average at-worst in that department.

So, plus-one for Cashman here, especially if he can still land Soto without having to take Grisham back.

It sounds like the Soto trade could go through any moment, so time to keep those eyes peeled...