The San Diego Padres are acquiring superstar outfielder Juan Soto and first baseman Josh Bell from the Washington Nationals, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
The Nationals will receive left-hander MacKenzie Gore, shortstop C.J. Abrams, outfielders Robert Hassell III and James Wood, right-hander Jarlin Susana, and one more major-league player in the deal, sources told Jeff Passan of ESPN.
Eric Hosmer was the major leaguer included in the original deal. However, Hosmer will no longer be a part of the move after he exercised his no-trade clause, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports. Washington was on Hosmer’s no-trade list.
The blockbuster deal will happen either way, sources told Jon Heyman of MLB Network.
Soto, the 2021 NL MVP runner-up, slashed .291/.427/.537 with 118 home runs, 108 doubles, 460 walks, and 357 RBIs over five seasons with the Nationals.
Meanwhile, Bell slashed .301/.384/.493 with 14 homers and 57 RBIs in 103 games this season for Washington.
Abrams is the Padres’ No. 1 prospect, Hassell is No. 2, Wood is No. 4, and Susana is No. 10, according to Baseball America. Abrams has gone deep twice and owns a .605 OPS over 46 games with the Padres during the 2022 campaign – his first in the big leagues.
Gore is a top former pitching prospect who was putting up a solid rookie season before going down with an elbow injury. The 23-year-old accrued a 4.12 FIP with 9.3 K/9 over 70 innings (13 starts).
