As at least a dozen teams pursue Washington Nationals star Juan Soto, it looks like the St. Louis Cardinals may have jumped to the front of the pack to land the gifted outfielder.
For weeks, talented players like Luis Castillo, Andrew Benintendi and Willson Contreras had received the lion’s share of the talk when it came to which impact players could be moved ahead of the Aug. 2 MLB trade deadline. However, that all changed two weeks ago when Juan Soto turned down a massive $440 million contract offer from Washington.
With Soto on the market, nearly half of the league is interested in making a deal for the uber-talented 23-year-old. And since he has two and a half years left on his contract, this is not just a sweepstakes for the big-market clubs that can pay him the rumored half-billion-dollar deal he is looking for. No, his gifts are so undeniable that small to mid-market teams are even willing to sell the majority of the farm just to rent the two-time All-Star for a few seasons.
