MLB Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz Amid 2023 World Series
The World Series is underway in MLB and trade rumors and free agency updates are kicking into full gear, with All-Stars at the forefront of them.
One such player is San Diego Padres left fielder Juan Soto, who has two teams interested in acquiring him in hopes of making a big playoff push in 2024.
Who are they and why might they be looking to bring one of the best players in the sport to their city?
What is the latest Shohei Ohtani, who figures to make all of the headlines this offseason amid free agency?
Find out with this collection of rumors from industry insiders.
Yankees Looking to Deal for Juan Soto?
A disastrous season in San Diego, which started with high-priced additions and ended without a playoff berth, has the Padres as a potential trade partner for All-Star left fielder Juan Soto.
Even in a relatively down season, Soto was the Padres' best player in 2023, blasting 35 homers, driving in 109 runs, stealing 12 bags, and accumulating an OPS+ of 158. On the defensive side of the ball, he had a fielding percentage of .986.
The New York Yankees, themselves woeful underperformers this season, recognize his play and would love to add him to a team that badly needs outfielders and big bats as the Bronx Bombers were anything but in 2023.
The Athletic's Chris Kirschner reported, "According to multiple sources inside the Yankees' organization, talks between the Yankees and Padres regarding Soto's potential availability have not yet happened. Those same sources said that doesn't mean talks won't eventually occur; they just have not begun. There could be a couple of reasons for this. On the Yankees' side, the team is still in the process of formulating its offseason plan, which includes analyzing payroll, while the Padres are in the middle of a managerial search."
He continued, "The Yankees have been closely monitoring the Padres' roster, specifically Soto, and the team's payroll crunch since before this season's trade deadline. With the Padres floundering at the deadline, the Yankees had one of their veteran scouts in San Diego taking inventory of their roster. Yankees officials unsurprisingly think very highly of Soto."
The team ranked 29th in batting average with .227 and 25th with 673 runs. They were anemic offensively, something one would not typically associate with that organization. They also struggled defensively, giving up big hits that probably should have been outs with better, more consistent play in the outfield.
Acquiring Soto would give the team what it needs both offensively and defensively, but at what price?
That would likely be the question.
A question another team, this one in the National League, will have to answer, too, as they also figure to be in the hunt for one of the league's best.
Cubs Also Looking at Trading for Soto
The Chicago Cubs are also expected to be in on any trade discussions for Soto, per Bruce Levine of 670 The Score.
The Cubs were significantly better than the Yankees in 2023, ranking 11th in average at .254, and sixth with 819 runs.
They could still use a big bat to help enhance the offense.
The Cubbies ranked 15th in home runs with 196. Adding Soto's 35 to that total would allow the team to drive in even more runs in pursuit of a postseason berth that just narrowly eluded them this season.
They are better off in terms of prospects that they could offer San Diego in return for Soto than the Yankees but with longtime favorite Ian Happ in left field, one would assume he would have to switch positions to make way for the All-Star.
And how does the arrival of Soto, and his position in the lineup, toy with the chemistry the team unexpectedly demonstrated this early in their rebuild?
Those are questions, beyond the price, that Cubs officials will have to discuss before engaging in any meaningful talks.
New Contender for Shohei Ohtani
There is a new contender to land Shohei Ohtani in free agency this offseason, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post: the Texas Rangers.
"They got a taste of winning, are unafraid to spend, and made their first cut six years ago. Word is they were ready to go for Ohtani at midseason," he wrote.
The idea that the Rangers, red-hot in this postseason and three games away from a World Series title, may potentially add the best two-way player in the game's history to their already impressive roster next season is terrifying for the rest of MLB.
That he would then contribute on the mound in 2025 following surgery for an arm injury, makes any potential signing that much more exciting for the team and its fans.
Heyman also added the San Francisco Giants to the mix and named both of those squads, and the Los Angeles Dodgers, as co-favorites to land the former league MVP.
The Dodgers have been most consistently mentioned in connection with Ohtani, and there is reason to believe that San Francisco's Oracle Park would not be favorable to a lefty hitter, but the idea that there are three legitimate contenders to land the most coveted free agent of the last 50 years should make for a compelling winter.