Padres All-Star recap and potential Juan Soto trade

The San Diego Padres sent three of their players to Los Angeles for the All-Star game earlier this week.

Pitcher Joe Musgrove, third baseman Manny Machado and second baseman Jake Cronenworth were the three Padres All-Stars for this season. Musgrove and Machado were originally voted in when the All-Star teams were announced. Machado even earned a spot as the starting third baseman for the National League All-Star team. Cronenworth was added onto the NL All-Star roster roughly a week before the All-Star Game after injuries to other NL All-Star players occurred.

Machado and Cronenworth each had two at-bats in the All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium. Unfortunately, none of the sluggers were able to come up with a hit in any of their at-bats. Cronenworth actually ended up striking out in one of his at-bats. Fortunately, Musgrove was able to pitch well in his short outing in this game. 

All-Star pitchers usually do not pitch for very long in the game, as they rarely go more than one inning in an All-Star game. This was the case when Musgrove came into the game to pitch. He was only able to pitch in one inning. Luckily, he made his one inning of pitching count. He did not give up any hits or runs, and he threw for two strikeouts. Musgrove struck out Cleveland Guardians’ second baseman Andres Gimenez, who is having a solid season. He also struck out New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge, who is having an MVP-caliber season. 

Unfortunately, the efforts of the Padres All-Stars and the rest of the NL All-Star team was not enough to win this game.

They lost to the American League All-Star team with a score of 3-2. This was the ninth loss in a row for the NL All-Star team. They have lost 16 of the last 19 All-Star Games. 

Luckily for the National League, the All-Star Game no longer decides home-field advantage for the World Series. Starting in the 2017 MLB Season, the All-Star Game has just been played for fun and has no deciding factor in home-field advantage for the World Series. Home-field advantage in the World Series is now determined by which of the two teams had the better regular season record. This seems to be a more fair rule because the American League was far too often receiving home-field advantage because of their success in the All-Star game for the last two decades.

Washington Nationals right fielder Juan Soto has been a highly discussed name over the last week.

There has been no shortage of trade rumors for Soto after he turned down a 15-year, $440 million extension with the Nationals. This would have been the largest contract in MLB history. Soto rejected the contract because of the fact that the yearly salary would be less than other big contracts in the MLB. There is also uncertainty with the potential selling of the team and new ownership. This could have played a factor in Soto rejecting the contract. 

Many rumors include the Padres considering making a trade for Soto. The Padres would have to trade several young players such as shortstop C.J. Abrams and pitcher MacKenzie Gore. They would also likely have to get rid of top Padres prospects like shortstop Jackson Merrill and outfielders James Wood and Robert Hassel III. If the Padres can find a way to get Soto without having to get rid of too many good, young players, then they could be a World Series contender for many years to come.