The dust cleared and general manager Mike Rizzo traded three players before the 2022 deadline in two separate trades. Yesterday it was Ehire Adrianza dealt to the Braves, and today it was All-Star Juan Soto and Josh Bell who were shipped to San Diego in an eight player blockbuster.
This is the beginning of a new era in Washington, D.C. to get the Nationals a little quicker to the reboot to winning that Rizzo referred to today.
Using a takeoff on manager Dave Martinez‘s “bumpy roads lead to beautiful places” was Rizzo’s “We’re on a bumpy road now.” Fans are upset. Soto was a fan favorite and a clutch performer in the Nats’ 2019 World Series season. But Rizzo felt that the team couldn’t extend him, and they did not want to get to his 2024 free agency and basically get little in value if he walked.
Instead, Rizzo traded Bell with Soto and scored three former Top-10 draft picks and two other top prospects along with veteran Luke Voit who comes with two more seasons of team control. LHP MacKenzie Gore will be on the IL with an elbow strain, SS C.J. Abrams will start at Triple-A Rochester, OF Robert Hassell III (RHIII) will start in the minors along with OF James Wood from Montgomery County, Maryland, and RHP Jarlin Susana in the Dominican Summer League.
New York Mets vs. Washington Nationals
Stadium: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
1st Pitch: 7:05 pm EDT
TV: MASN; SNY, MLB App (out-of-network only)
Nats Radio: 106.7 The Fan and via the MLB app
Lineups (subject to change without notice):
