The Philadelphia Phillies will open the second half of the 2023 MLB season on Friday, hosting the San Diego Padres at Citizens Bank Park in a 4-game series.

The MLB All-Star Game was last night, as the Rob Thomson-led National League team beat the American League 3-2, snapping an 11-year losing streak. 

Phillies Highlights and All-Star Game Recap Here >>

Following the game, San Diego Padres outfielder Juan Soto spoke with the broadcast crew and told David Ortiz that the “Phillies are taking care of him” by inviting him to fly back to Philly with the team.

Tamper Time: Juan Soto to Philly

San Diego Padres are in the midst of a disappointing 2023 campaign after being eliminated at the hands of the Phillies last season in the NLCS.

The Padres are currently 43-47 on the year and in fourth place in the National League West standings, 8.5 games behind the first place Los Angeles Dodgers.

Juan Soto, while named an All-Star, isn’t exactly having one of his best seasons as he continues to “underperform” since being traded to San Diego.

On the year, Soto is batting .265 with a .898 OPS. He has 15 home runs and 47 RBI. Obviously, those stats are nothing to complain about, but when writing about the 24-year old Soto, there is always a lot more to be expected. 

Side Note: Nick needs to update his Twitter name. Do NOT associate the Phillies with the Sixers.

Soto signed a 1 year, $23 million contract with the San Diego Padres for this season in year three of arbitration. Next season, he will have his final year of arbitration before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2025. 

Will the Padres actually look to trade Juan Soto at the deadline?

I highly doubt it, but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been reports of the Padres becoming sellers at the MLB Trade Deadline. Here’s what Jon Heyman said in early July about the possibility of the Padres and Mets pivoting to sell at the deadline.

“The Padres, as disappointing as the Mets, may have to consider pivoting to sell. If so, free agents to be Blake Snell and Josh Hader would be huge targets. It would be interesting to see if superstar Juan Soto could be considered for trade again. The Padres’ chances to re-sign him don’t seem especially promising.”

Again, I highly doubt it. However, teams like the New York Mets, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres are certainly ones to keep an eye on as we approach the deadline.

These are teams with a ton of talent and who are underperforming this season. They could turn into sellers if they don’t come out strong in the second half, which begins on Friday.

Last week, I wrote about the availability of Mets starting pitchers and two key players on the Cardinals that could be dealt at the deadline. Check that out here >>

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