Juan Soto Rumors: Nationals Star Believed to Be Targeting Record AAV in Next Contract

Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto is believed to be seeking close to or above the current highest annual average value (AAV) in baseball for his next contract, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network.

ESPN's Enrique Rosas previously reported that Soto turned down the Nats' 13-year, $350 million offer.

"Yes, they made me an offer a few months ago, before the lockout," Soto told Rojas.

"But right now, my agents and I think the best option is to go year by year and wait for free agency. My agent, Scott Boras, has control over the situation."

Soto hit .313 (.999 OPS) with 29 home runs and 95 RBI last year in his age-22 season.

He is eligible to become a free agent in 2025.

Soto has been nothing short of exceptional for the Nats during his four-year career. He's hit .301 with a .981 OPS and sports a 162-game average of 34 home runs and 109 RBI.

Soto's career accolades include three top-10 finishes in the National League MVP voting, a pair of Silver Slugger awards and an All-Star Game appearance.

He very well could be the unquestioned best player in baseball by the time he hits free agency, but it appears he wants to be a National for life at this time.

"Anyway, I still think of Washington as the place where I would like to spend the rest of my career, so we will see," Soto said to Rojas.

That's good news for a Nationals team that tore its team apart last year, most notably trading a pair of 2019 World Series champion stalwarts in starting pitcher Max Scherzer and shortstop Trea Turner to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The rebuilding Nats went just 65-97 last season even with Soto dominating all year. Washington also needs to improve its farm system, with Keith Law of The Athletic (No. 27), Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report (No. 27) and Prospects 1500 (No. 25) notably ranking it low relative to the rest of MLB.

Obviously, the Nats would like to retain Soto, build up the farm system and work their way back to playoff contention, which was commonplace in the 2010s.