{"id":32893,"date":"2022-08-02T06:48:53","date_gmt":"2022-08-02T06:48:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/juan-soto-trade-watch-is-emotional-for-nationals-and-their-fans\/"},"modified":"2022-08-02T06:48:53","modified_gmt":"2022-08-02T06:48:53","slug":"juan-soto-trade-watch-is-emotional-for-nationals-and-their-fans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/juan-soto-trade-watch-is-emotional-for-nationals-and-their-fans\/","title":{"rendered":"Juan Soto trade watch is emotional for Nationals and their fans"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div class=\"wpds-c-grBDNq hide-for-print mb-sm undefined\">\n<div class=\"PJLV PJLV-iAjpuP-css flex items-center\" data-qa=\"article-actions\">\n<div class=\"wpds-c-fLphcs\"><button class=\"wpds-c-gNHrZC wpds-c-gNHrZC-bywHgD-variant-primary wpds-c-gNHrZC-biynoz-density-compact wpds-c-gNHrZC-hZSyid-isOutline-true wpds-c-gNHrZC-ejCoEP-icon-left wpds-c-gNHrZC-futxca-cv wpds-c-gNHrZC-ihhnWqF-css\"><button class=\"PJLV PJLV-igcOMTV-css\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\" fill=\"currentColor\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" role=\"img\" class=\"wpds-c-coakfw wpds-c-efqEZa focus-highlight flex items-center justify-center brad-lg pointer transition-400 ease-in-out transition-colors\" aria-label=\"Comment on this story\" iconstyle=\"[object Object]\"><title>Comment on this story<\/title><path d=\"M14 14V2H2v9.47h8.18L12.43 13ZM3 10.52V3h10v9.23l-2.5-1.66Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p>Comment<\/p>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"teaser-content grid-center\">\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">When Juan Soto came to the plate in the first inning Monday night, most of those in the lower bowl at Nationals Park stood and clapped.  Last first at-bat as a Washington National?  As he slid headfirst across the plate a few moments later, the thought was unavoidable.  Last run as a Nat?  In the fourth, when he hit a how-do-you-replace-that shot to left-center, you had to wonder.  Last homer with the Nats?  All the while, the clock ticked toward Tuesday&#8217;s trade deadline \u2014 one Soto has been the fulcrum of for more than two weeks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">By the eighth inning, so many of the Nats fans among the 29,034 who drank in a 7-3 loss to Max Scherzer and the New York Mets were standing and chanting, \u201cWe love Soto!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">\u201cIt means a lot,\u201d Soto said after taking Scherzer deep and walking in his three other plate appearances.  \u201cIt kind of feels weird, too, because nothing [has] happened yet, and we just still waiting.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">This is tough stuff, and on an unusually pleasant August evening, you could almost feel it strangling the franchise and its fan base.  There is a chance \u2014 a chance \u2014 that when dawn breaks Tuesday, Soto will face a future in which he never puts on a Nationals uniform again.  Put the evaluation of whatever comes back in return on the back burner for a moment.  It&#8217;s a lot to stomach.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">\u201cYou&#8217;re not going to give away these players and not get something in return that we feel like, &#8216;Hey, this is what our future&#8217;s going to be, and this is going to be really good for us,&#8217; \u201d Manager Dave Martinez said.  \u201cThose guys up there [in the front office] are working diligently to get those players that we need, if we can get it.  If not, we have arguably one of the youngest best players in the game, and I love the kid.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Until 6 pm Tuesday, the situation is incredibly fluid.  By the time you read this on newsprint, Soto could have been traded.  Refresh your Twitter feed frequently.  It&#8217;s the only way to keep up.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">\u201cI feel good where I&#8217;m at, and I understand it&#8217;s a business and they need to do whatever they need to do,\u201d Soto said.  \u201cI&#8217;m just another player, another employee here \u2014 like Zim used to say.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Forever Nat Ryan Zimmerman never faced such a situation.  But here&#8217;s an undying truth about any potential Soto deal: The Nationals have to be asking for an unprecedented return.  That&#8217;s their responsibility, given a player of his ability and his age has never been traded with two years and two months of control left before free agency.  To a contending team, that&#8217;s not just three pennant races and three Octobers.  It&#8217;s also two full 162-game seasons, which can&#8217;t be ignored.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p><span class=\"font--article-body font-copy hide-for-print ma-0 pb-md db italic interstitial\">As deadline looms, Josh Bell waits to reflect too much on time with Nats<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">But the flip side of asking for such a haul \u2014 completely appropriately \u2014 is that it just might be too much for an opposing general manager, not to mention an opposing ownership group, to swallow.  Any club that trades for Soto and expects to be able to sign him to a contract extension has n&#8217;t listened closely to the player \u2014 who has spoken repeatedly about his curiosity about having 30 teams bidding on his services in free agency \u2014 or his agent , Scott Boras.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">A potential deal has to be based in its baseball sense, and it will be framed as such.  But it&#8217;s undeniable that there&#8217;s a public relations element to it, too.  And it would be hard for General Manager Mike Rizzo to stand in front of the fan base and argue that what he got for a generational talent will transform the franchise if the rest of the industry reacts with some version of \u201cThat&#8217;s all they got?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">This must be a wow of a return, one that gives the fan base more reasons to come to the ballpark \u2014 not just in two or three years but immediately.  That&#8217;s a hard package for any team to part with.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Plus, it would be completely reasonable for Rizzo to say some version of: \u201cWhy is this a bad outcome?  We still have one of the game&#8217;s best young players.  There will be a new ownership group in place in the offseason.  Maybe they&#8217;ll be able to go further than the 15-year, $440 million deal Soto turned down from the Lerner family.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">I&#8217;ve become pessimistic about whether a deal can be pulled off \u2014 and it&#8217;s more a 65-35 gut feel against such a possibility than 90-10 \u2014 so Soto probably will be traded five minutes after these words are published.  There&#8217;s no certainty to any of this.  Hang on to your hat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Well, wait.  There&#8217;s certainty about this much: October 2019 and the parade that followed \u2014 man, they feel way more than two years and nine months ago.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">\u201cIt seems like a very long time ago,\u201d Martinez said.  \u201cIt does.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p><span class=\"font--article-body font-copy hide-for-print ma-0 pb-md db italic interstitial\">MLB trade deadline tracker: Orioles send star Trey Mancini to Astros<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">As if to twist that particular knife, the Mets started Scherzer on Monday night in what could have been Soto&#8217;s last game in the uniform they each wore during that wild run to a World Series title.  In an unusually expansive and poignant pregame meeting with reporters, Martinez teared up a couple of times while thinking about what was and what remains.  Since trading Scherzer and Trea Turner \u2014 not to mention Daniel Hudson and Yan Gomes and others \u2014 at last year&#8217;s deadline, the Nationals are 53-111 \u2014 numbers that make sense if you watch this team play regularly yet still seem staggering in black and white.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Martinez said Monday that he has a room in his house in which he stores the most meaningful memorabilia he has collected over the years.  So much is from 2019. In these dark days, he often heads down there to reminisce with old photos.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">\u201cIt kind of says, &#8216;Hey, no matter what happens, the goal is to get back there, right?&#8217;  \u201d Martinez said.  \u201cSo every day, I&#8217;ll go down there, I&#8217;ll pick myself up and say, &#8216;Hey, one day we&#8217;ll be back there.&#8217;  Just keep those memories intact.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">But it&#8217;s not just the swirl around Soto that makes those days seem more distant.  It&#8217;s the deterioration of professionalism in some corners of his own clubhouse.  On Monday afternoon, Victor Robles \u2014 once the unquestioned starting center fielder on a World Series champion, now a spare part with an unclear future \u2014 had a box of T-shirts in front of his locker, distributing them to any interested teammates.  On the front: a picture of Robles wearing a clown nose \u2014 a nod to his dugout antics last month after Arizona&#8217;s Madison Bumgarner called him a \u201cclown\u201d for pimping a solo home run when the Nats were down six runs in the eighth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">On a winning team, an amusing, even self-deprecating T-shirt could be unifying.  But for a group that has the worst record in baseball \u2014 and may have an even surer hold on that status by September \u2014 it&#8217;s comical.  Who are the clowns, Victor?  The effort put into designing and ordering those shirts might have been better used figuring out how not to get thrown out on the base paths.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">But I digress.  That, of course, is not close to the most important part of this week.  The most important part of this week isn&#8217;t even about this week.  It&#8217;s about the direction of the franchise.  And we&#8217;ll know something about that direction based on whether Juan Soto gets another ovation in home whites Tuesday night \u2014 or he has gathered his belongings and departed the home clubhouse for the final time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<section class=\"b bt bc-offblack dn-ns hide-for-print\" data-testid=\"mostRead\" subscriptions-section=\"content\"\/><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Comment on this story Comment When Juan Soto came to the plate in the first inning Monday night, most of those in the lower bowl at Nationals Park stood and clapped. Last first at-bat as a Washington National? As he slid headfirst across the plate a few moments later, the thought was unavoidable. Last run &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/juan-soto-trade-watch-is-emotional-for-nationals-and-their-fans\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Juan Soto trade watch is emotional for Nationals and their fans<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":43989,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/padres-juan-soto-returns-to-nats-park-for-first-time-since-trade\/","url_meta":{"origin":32893,"position":0},"title":"Padres&#8217; Juan Soto returns to Nats Park for first time since trade","date":"August 13, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Placeholder while article actions loadJust after 2 pm Friday, Juan Soto walked down the long ramp from the players' parking lot at Nationals Park, taking the same path he has before so many games, heading to the clubhouse he once called home.But instead of fully entering \u2014 instead of going\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33557,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/juan-soto-traded-to-san-diego-padres-nationals-get-haul-of-prospects\/","url_meta":{"origin":32893,"position":1},"title":"Juan Soto traded to San Diego Padres;  Nationals get haul of prospects","date":"August 2, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Comment on this storyCommentThe Washington Nationals did what once seemed unthinkable Tuesday: They traded Juan Soto.Why? That will be debated for weeks and months \u2014 let alone years and decades in a city that watched Soto, still only 23, grow into a star outfielder and one of the best hitters\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33337,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/nationals-trade-juan-soto-to-padres-alongside-josh-bell-in-monumental-mlb-trade-deadline-deal\/","url_meta":{"origin":32893,"position":2},"title":"Nationals trade Juan Soto to Padres alongside Josh Bell in monumental MLB trade deadline deal","date":"August 2, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"After a whirlwind three weeks, Juan Soto is on the move. The Washington Nationals reportedly traded their young superstar to the San Diego Padres on Tuesday alongside star first baseman Josh Bell, hours ahead of MLB's 6 pm trade deadline, Yahoo Sports' Hannah Keyser confirmed. MLB.com's Jon Morosi reported the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18844,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/juan-soto-discusses-nationals-contract-offer-ahead-of-home-run-derby\/","url_meta":{"origin":32893,"position":3},"title":"Juan Soto discusses Nationals&#8217; contract offer ahead of Home Run Derby","date":"July 19, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Comment on this storyCommentLOS ANGELES \u2014 The clearest picture of just how much Juan Soto's suddenly uncertain future with the Washington Nationals is dominating the baseball world wasn't caught on any of the half-dozen cameras that were set up long before Soto took his place in front of his name\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33971,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/juan-sotos-trade-to-the-padres-leaves-a-star-sized-hole-in-washington-that-might-never-be-filled\/","url_meta":{"origin":32893,"position":4},"title":"Juan Soto&#8217;s trade to the Padres leaves a star-sized hole in Washington that might never be filled","date":"August 3, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"WASHINGTON \u2013 For his last hit as a Washington National, Juan Soto homered off his former teammate and fellow 2019 champion, Max Scherzer, now pitching for the likely playoff-bound New York Mets. By the time the team played again, Soto had been traded to the San Diego Padres. He also\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":31560,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/juan-soto-trade-rumors-nationals-reportedly-whittle-down-suitors-to-three-as-deadline-looms\/","url_meta":{"origin":32893,"position":5},"title":"Juan Soto trade rumors: Nationals reportedly whittle down suitors to three as deadline looms","date":"July 31, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! The sweepstakes for Washington Nationals star Juan Soto is reportedly down to three teams.Soto and the Nationals repeatedly failed to come to an agreement on a long-term contract extension that would have paid the outfielder handsomely and kept him in DC for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-apps\/imrs.php?src=https:\/\/arc-anglerfish-washpost-prod-washpost.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/NGNDPYVMBJERXOAOTEJYE424LE.jpg&w=1440","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32893"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32893"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32893\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}