Can the Mariners make the deal of the century for Juan Soto?

It didn’t take long for the rumor mill to begin swirling about one of the game’s best players, Washington Nationals right fielder Juan Soto. Soto is a generational type of talent. At the age of twenty-three and in only his fifth season in the big leagues, Soto has an all-star appearance, two silver slugger awards, a batting title, and the franchise’s first world series championship in 2019. In 2021, he would go on to finish second in the National League MVP voting. So why in the world would the Seattle Mariners have a shot at the superstar?

Over the past few days, we have seen numerous reports suggesting that the Nationals may consider trading their best player due to zero progress in a contract extension. In February, ESPN’s Enrique Rojas was confirmed by Juan Soto himself that he had recently turned down a 13-year, 350 million dollar extension.

Naturally, that gets people buzzin’ as that offer looks very much like a final type of offer from a Nationals franchise that has basically chosen to not field a competitive team around a player who is likely not even in his prime yet, while still playing like a top ten player in the game.

As these reports circulated, a response came on Thursday in a message from Soto’s agent Scott Boras to New York Post’s Jon Heyman, stating that trade is not happening. That is what we call damage control. I believe this information started to get out because I believe that the Nationals are ready to begin the process of trading Juan Soto.

This will not be a quick process, as Soto’s contract doesn’t expire until 2024. There will be no amount of losses this summer that will push their front office to pull the trigger. The deal will only come once the full realization of his departure and the massive haul of prospects they could receive come to an acceptable point for ownership.

I don’t believe that Soto will be traded this summer. I do believe that Soto will be on a different team by Opening Day 2023. There’s too much value for both parties to wait much longer in trading such a valuable asset. I believe that the Seattle Mariners are the perfect team to make the jump and make the deal of the century.

Here are three reasons why the Seattle Mariners should do everything to acquire Juan Soto by 2023

Reason #1: The Mariners have the talent to make the deal

Even with the graduation of super-prospect Julio Rodriguez, the Seattle Mariners still have one of the league’s top farm systems. There’s no lack of pitching talent, either recently graduated, or early in their journey. And while the hitting talent has had a few noticeable graduations, there’s some elite talent, highlighted by #1 prospect Noelvi Marte.

The Nationals won the world series in 2019 with a handful of star players, but it was their depth that pushed them to a title. Their rotation was so deep that they had their 100 million dollar #3 pitcher in the regular season, coming out of the bullpen in the playoffs.

Other than prime Anthony Rendon, Trea Turner, and Soto, the rest of the team was full of role players that stepped up in the biggest moments. These current Nationals lack talent and depth at numerous spots and being in the ultra-competitive NL East, you need a bunch of good players, rather than one star.

The trade would be huge, and it would likely drop Seattle’s prospect rankings by at least ten spots, but it goes back to winning championships, not a puff piece article in March every year.

This trade is going to be painful, but I believe it is worth it. No matter what happens this summer, I don’t honestly ever believe Jarred Kelenic will rise to the level of a Juan Soto. I really like Kelenic, but if that’s a piece that gets me 25% of the way to Juan Soto, then you begin the negotiations. From there I’m also sending Marte to Washington, along with Seattle’s #2 pitching prospect Emerson Hancock.

A package headlined by Kelenic and Marte, two #1 level prospects, and front half of the rotation arm in Hancock is a legit start. You’re likely going to have to offer two lottery ticket level prospects, and maybe even a more MLB-ready player. If healthy, Kyle Lewis in 2023 could be a DH that the Nationals would covet in a deal.

A six-for-one deal is steep, but Seattle keeps Julio, Gilbert, Kirby, and Ford. I wouldn’t move that core four, but anyone else should be on the table for such an asset as Soto.

Reason #2: The Mariners have the money

The Seattle Mariners have not spent real money on an offensive threat since they got a heck of a deal signing Nelson Cruz to a four-year deal worth 57 million dollars. The year before, they shook the baseball world by signing Robinson Cano to a ten-year 240 million dollar deal that has really shaped where the franchise is today, for better or worse.

We’re shockingly nearing a decade since that massive deal. That means the Mariners have not spent nine figures on an offensive weapon. You can call that being careful with large contracts, but many will call it being cheap. The massive to moderate bills of Cano, Felix, Cruz, Seager, and Iwakuma are gone, and the signing of Robbie Ray doesn’t come close to matching the money spent in the 2014-2018 years.

As we saw this past off-season, with numerous talented hitters available, the Mariners failed to acquire any of them. By trading for Soto, you’ll have him in the building for two seasons, giving you two years to sell him on Seattle. The Nationals appeared to play around with Soto and it looks like it backfired.

After acquiring Soto, I’d offer him the same 13-year offer, but raise the salary to 425 million. That’d put Soto at just about 32.7 million per year, which would give him the fourth-highest AAV among all hitters in the league, sitting only behind Francisco Lindor’s $34 million in AAV, and Angels teammates Anthony Rendon at $35 million and Mike Trout’s $35.5 million. Correa is at $35.1, but with how short that deal could be, I’m not counting it.

I’d also offer him a player option after year the fifth year, allowing him to potentially be a free agent again at age twenty-nine. This would allow him to hit the open market while he’s still in his prime.

Whether you are the Dodgers or the Rays, that’s a hefty price to pay, no doubt. But with elite talents like Julio, Gilbert and Kirby years away from large paydays, there’s no reason not to break the bank on one of the best hitters baseball.