Nationals Manager Pours Salt Into Padres' Wound After James Wood, CJ Abrams Dominance

Nationals manager Dave Martinez also rubbed salt in the Padres' wound.

“Sorry about it,” Martinez said. “They’re a Nat, right? I mean, that’s how the game goes. They got a pretty good player in the trade.

"We got really good players in the trade. So it worked out for us. I mean, these guys are the cornerstones of our organization right now. They’re young. They’re full of energy. As you can see, they love to play the game.”

Gore, who is one of the best pitchers in baseball this season, starts Wednesday for the Nationals.

All three of those players are in their mid-to-early 20s, not even in their athletic prime, yet they are all providing major contributions that the Padres could use now.

Soto, the player who was acquired for that trio, spent the past season in New York with the Yankees and is now set to finish his career with the Mets.

Soto only played one full season with the Padres since he was acquired at the deadline during the 2022 season.

He did make the Padres serious contenders and gave the Los Angeles Dodgers a run for their money.

The Padres still have Dylan Cease and Michael King, two high-caliber starting pitchers who came to San Diego as a result of trading Soto to the Yankees.

Unfortunately, they are both set to hit free agency, and the Padres can only realistically keep one of them.

In baseball history, the Soto trade will go down as a mistake, especially if Wood and Abrams continue to develop. However, it is hard to question Preller's process.

He made a move for a future Hall of Fame outfielder, and few baseball executives can say they wouldn't do the same.

It was a big swing from Preller, which resulted in a massive miss, leaving the Padres looking at their former prospects shining before their eyes.

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