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One of the largest trades in recent history just happened earlier today, and no, the Los Angeles Dodgers were not involved. The San Diego Padres just made a blockbuster deal to acquire Juan Soto and Josh Bell from the Washington Nationals.
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Earlier today, the San Diego Padres offered multiple top prospects plus Eric Hosmer to the Nationals in exchange for the two stars. Although Hosmer had a no-trade clause and refused to be dealt to Washington, the trade still went through. Now one of Major League Baseball's top young stars is in the National League West.
Since both the Padres and Dodgers are in the NL West, many Los Angeles Dodgers fans are jealous about this trade. Los Angeles was in the running to get Juan Soto but they fell short.
Although the Padres just got a whole lot better, the Dodgers still hold a 12-game lead over the Padres in the NL West. They are still one of the best teams in the MLB, and will likely continue to be so.
However, Juan Soto and Josh Bell are gigantic pickups for the San Diego Padres. They will definitely help San Diego reach the playoffs this season.
Could San Diego surpass the Los Angeles Dodgers with Soto and Bell?
At the age of 23, Juan Soto has established himself as one of the best stars in Major League Baseball. Since entering the MLB in 2018, Soto has a career .291 batting average, .538 slugging percentage, and a .966 OPS. He also already has a whopping 21.4 WAR.
His efforts have earned him two All-Star appearances and multiple MVP votes. This season, Soto is batting .246, slugging .485, with an OPS of .894, and these numbers are considered low for the slugger.
Josh Bell, on the other hand, is having an elite season this year as well. This season, Bell is batting .301 with a slugging percentage just shy of .500. He has 113 hits in 103 games played, and he has yet to miss a game this season.
Mixing these two into an already solid San Diego Padres squad is going to be dangerous for the final months of the season. There is a possibility they can catch up to the Los Angeles Dodgers if they can get hot.
