Today is the MLB deadline to exchange arbitration figures or settle on a one-year contract and a salary for the 2023 season.
That means we will see a flurry of deals today.
Perhaps the biggest name today was San Diego Padres outfielder Juan Soto.
He has already agreed to his 2023 pay: he is going to earn a cool $23 million, per several reports.
That’s a nice salary bump from the $17.1 million he made in 2022.
Soto is a real difference-maker, and the Padres knew that he was going to be expensive when they flipped five top prospects plus first baseman Luke Voit to get him and first baseman Josh Bell prior to the 2022 deadline.
In fact, he still has two seasons of arbitration left: 2023 and 2024.
Juan Soto agrees to a 1 year deal for $23 million with the Padres to avoid arbitration, still 2 years from free agency when he'll be just 26 years old
— Isaac (@isaacfromFL) January 13, 2023
His 2024 salary could break a record and may surpass $30 million.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
People in San Diego would love for the Padres to extend the guy:
Juan Soto receiving a nice pay bump. Now to extend .
— Sunny Diego (@diegornelas) January 13, 2023
But that scenario is looking unlikely, as he has stated he would love to go year to year before reaching free agency.
Soto hit .236/.388/.390 with six home runs and a 130 wRC+ in 52 games with the Padres last year.
Many hitters would kill for that stat line, but those numbers were thoroughly disappointing for Soto’s lofty standards.
You wouldn’t believe his projections for 2023.
SD fans have yet to witness the real Juan Soto https://t.co/jlWgSflDK2
— Glenn Turgeon (insert blue checkmark here) (@Coacht77) January 13, 2023
If Soto returns to form and posts those numbers, the Padres seem ticketed for a deep playoffs run.
Some of us were actually excited when we saw the notification of Soto’s agreement on our favorite app.
I almost screamed when I saw "The Padres and Juan Soto are in agreement…" damn you ESPN
— Josh Goryl (@Goryl_97) January 13, 2023
It’s not quite a multi-year extension, but it’s nice to see the young star getting paid.
