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MLB Rumors: Juan Soto, Padres Agree to $23M Contract for 2023 to Avoid Arbitration

Joseph Zucker

The San Diego Padres and Juan Soto agreed to a $23 million salary for the 2023 season, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

The deal allows for the parties to avoid what can be the contentious arbitration process.

Soto is arbitration-eligible for one more season before his highly anticipated free agency in 2025.

The two-time All-Star finished out the 2022 season in Southern California following his blockbuster trade from the Washington Nationals.

In 153 games between the two stops, Soto finished with 27 home runs, 62 RBI and an MLB-best 135 walks. It was a somewhat down year as his .853 OPS and 149 OPS+ were noticeably below his 2021 standards (.999 OPS, 175 OPS+).

Still, his performance did little to change his substantial earning power.

Soto already reportedly turned down a 15-year, $440 million offer from the Nationals in the summer. Passan reported on The Pat McAfee Show in December the 24-year-old could get north of $500 million from his first big multiyear deal.

Nobody expects an extension with the Padres to be a foregone conclusion given the amount of money at stake.

You would assume, though, that San Diego is willing to at least make a serious run when it gave up so much to get him in the first place. This is also the same organization that has committed $340 million to Fernando Tatis Jr., $300 million to Manny Machado and $280 million to Xander Bogaerts.

"When we made the deal, we made it knowing that we got him for three pennant races," general manager A.J. Preller said of Soto in October. "He's an incredibly talented player, he's an impact player, and we'll have those conversations here. This offseason is kind of taking the temperature, seeing where his head is at going forward."

With Soto locked in for 2023, perhaps Preller and the front office can start to make headway on an extension well before he hits the open market.

   

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