UPDATE, 8/2/22, 12:52 p.m.

Bob Nightengale reports the Soto deal is done minus Eric Hosmer, who wouldn’t approve a trade to the Nationals.

Original post, 8/2/22, 12:07 p.m.

It has finally happened.

The blockbuster trade we’ve all been waiting for has come to fruition at the MLB trade deadline with the San Diego Padres acquiring superstar slugger Juan Soto from the Washington Nationals. Not only will this be the biggest deal of the entire trade deadline, but it will also go down as one of the most significant trades in the history of baseball.

Per Jon Morosi of MLB Network, and in what is an absolute blockbuster of a trade, the Padres also acquire a power bat in Josh Bell while the Nationals receive pitcher MacKenzie Gore, shortstop CJ Abrams, OF Robert Hassell III, OF James Wood and RHP Jarlin Susana.

While Washington is getting back some of San Diego’s top prospects, the fact the Padres didn’t have to give up any of their big hitters or established major league stars makes this a huge, huge win.

Per Jon Heyman, OF Eric Hosmer is also included in the deal. However, per Dennis Lin of The Athletic, the Nationals are on Hosmer’s 10-man no-trade list, so he would have to give his consent in order to be included in any deal with Washington.

Soto has been on the trading block ever since rejecting a 15-year, $440 million extension from the Nats, and the school of thought has always been that the two-time All-Star would be moved before the deadline. The only looming question was what team would be willing and able to give up the type of package it would take to acquire a generational talent and one of the best players in the sport right now. After all, Soto is still only 23-years-old and he has two-and-a-half-years left of team control before becoming a free agent.

In days leading up to the trade deadline multiple reports had the amount of teams involved in the Soto sweepstakes down to three, with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the St. Louis Cardinals and the San Diego Padres seen as the main frontrunners. All three contenders have both the loaded farm systems and the major league talent to be able to pull off such a deal as this.

The field was of course much larger for Soto at one point with the Mets being one of the teams believed to have touched base with the Nationals about the 2019 World Series winner. However, with the Nats wanting top prospects such as Francisco Alvarez, Brett Baty, Mark Vientos and Ronny Mauricio, the Mets quickly took themselves out of the running. They were also interested in acquiring Bell in order to inject more pop into the middle of their lineup, but they will now have to move on to other targets with Bell also landing in San Diego.

It also becomes clear just how much the Mets would have had to give up in order to acquire Soto. The Padres gave up two former top 10 picks, a top 20 prospect, a top 80 prospect and a couple of established major leaguers. So, using that as a comp, the Mets would have had to give up Alvarez, Baty and probably Vientos and a couple of players on the major league roster. You can understand why general manager Billy Eppler may not have been comfortable with paying that hefty a price.

The winner of the Soto sweepstakes has proved to be the Padres, who have sent a substantial but smaller than expected package to the Nationals in order to acquire one of baseball’s most exciting young talents and, therefore, widen their window to win a World Series. Or multiple World Series as the case may be. The fact that San Diego didn’t have to give up established major leaguers and can now add Soto and Bell to a core featuring Manny Machado, Austin Nola and Fernando Tatis Jr. is beyond scary.

However, while we of course have to wait to see how this trade plays out, it is hard not to say it is already worth it for the Padres who are in win-now mode. They also traded for Milwaukee Brewers closer Josh Hader earlier this week in order to load up ahead of what they hope will be a deep postseason run. Soto is obviously a significant addition and will bolster San Diego’s chances of winning a ring within the next couple of years. If they can then come to agreement on a long-term deal with the outfielder, then this trade will only look even better for the Padres.

In Soto the Padres are getting a player who can impact both the present and the long-term future. Putting any extension talk aside for one minute, it is clear that Soto substantially improves this Padres roster instantly. The lefty is slashing .246/.408/.485 with a .894 OPS this season. He has 21 home runs, 62 runs, 46 RBI and six stolen bases. He also leads the majors in walks with 91, and he is coming off a hot July when he hit .315/.495/.616 with six home runs. Soto is a career .291/.427/.538 hitter and he’s one of the best power hitters in the game. The Padres are getting a special, special player and this will go down as a landmark trade and, indeed day, in baseball.

More to follow.