With Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto reportedly up for grabs after months of speculation, the MLB's attention now turns to examining where he could land.
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported Saturday, citing sources, that the Nationals will entertain trade offers for the 23-year-old slugger after he recently turned down their 15-year, $440 million contract offer.
Shortly after the news broke, CBS Sports' R.J. Anderson ranked the league’s other 29 teams based on their likelihood of landing the young All-Star.
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The Giants landed in the list’s top five at No. 4., with Anderson noting Soto could be the “face of the franchise” San Francisco needs.
“The Giants have authored dark-horse pursuits in the past for the likes of Giancarlo Stanton and Bryce Harper,” Anderson writes. “Top executive Farhan Zaidi also knows all about chasing down stars from his time as a member of the Dodgers front office. The Giants have little in the way of meaningful long-term commitments, and Soto would serve as a spiritual successor to Buster Posey as the face of the franchise.
“The catch is that Zaidi doesn't have the kind of prospect war chest that some of his competitors do, meaning he might have to take back a bad contract, like Patrick Corbin's, to make up for it.”
Along with the Giants in Anderson’s top five are the Seattle Mariners (No. 5), New York Yankees (No. 3), Los Angeles Dodgers (No. 2) and St. Louis Cardinals (No. 1).
San Francisco Giants
It’s no surprise -- however unwelcome -- that the heavy-spending Dodgers and Yankees are at the top of the list, and the Giants certainly wouldn’t like to see another National League contender in the Cardinals land Soto.
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But as Anderson writes, it would take a hefty package for San Francisco to get Washington to agree to a trade. And Corbin, who becomes a free agent after the 2024 season like Soto, is still owed nearly $50 million over the next two years.
To no one’s surprise, it won’t be easy to land one of the league’s best hitters.
But based on this list, the Giants might just have a chance.