The San Diego Padres need to find ways to improve this offseason.
Many people thought in spring training that they would be one of the favorites to win the National League.
Instead, they could not even make it into the playoffs.
One player who had an awesome season was outfielder Juan Soto.
It was his first full season as a Padre and he put together a career year.
Soto hit .275 with a career-high 35 home runs and 109 RBI and played all 162 games.
Also, Soto led the league in walks with 132.
His future in baseball is as bright as any player in the league.
The only question is which team Soto will be playing for in a few years.
According to AJ Cassavell, the Padres plan on finding a contract extension for Soto this offseason.
He only has one more year under contract before he hits unrestricted free agency in 2025.
A.J. Preller says the “first path” with Juan Soto this offseason is to work out an extension. Asked whether he’d consider trading Soto, Preller said, “We’ve never been a group that says no to anything. I wouldn’t read into that. That’s just kind of the way we operate.”
— AJ Cassavell (@AJCassavell) October 4, 2023
The Padres gave up a ton to land Soto last season.
There is no way they can just let him walk now.
Soto is only 24 years old and has his best years ahead of him.
He will most likely become the highest-paid player in baseball when his extension arrives.
Soto is one of the rare players in baseball that controls the strike zone.
Many players sell out for home runs while Soto can hit his share of homers while not striking out.
His 132 walks this year came with only 129 strikeouts.
Having a player like that in your lineup is guaranteed to make the team better.
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