Dodgers Should Go All In for Nationals' Juan Soto Amid MLB Trade Rumors

The Los Angeles Dodgers are no strangers to ransacking the Washington Nationals roster to help their World Series pursuit.

A year ago, the Dodgers sent a haul of young players led by Josiah Gray and Keibert Ruiz to the Nats in return for for Max Scherzer and Trea Turner.

Last season's World Series pursuit came up empty, but the 2022 quest for a title could be reinvigorated by a late push for Juan Soto before the trade deadline at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

The Dodgers have been lurking in the background of the Soto rumors for the last few days, and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic detailed their interest in the 23-year-old on Monday.

"Don’t rule out the Dodgers on Soto. They have been in contact with the Nationals, and if the Padres make a splash somewhere else, it might create the opening L.A. needs to pull off another deadline stunner," he wrote.

Former MLB general manager and CBS Sports analyst Jim Bowden reported on Monday night that the Dodgers, San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals "all improved" their trade offers for Soto.

As was the case a year ago, the Dodgers are competing with a division rival for the Nationals' top trade targets. San Diego thought it had Scherzer last year and then the Dodgers swooped in for a mega-package that brought the eight-time All-Star and Turner to Los Angeles.

Turner remained with the team as the long-term shortstop so that Corey Seager could depart in the offseason.

The Dodgers have six players who reside inside the top 75 of MLB.com's Top 100 prospects list. Catcher Diego Cartaya would likely be the centerpiece of any trade package for Soto.

Los Angeles could also include some major league position players to rebuild the Nationals roster right away. The Dodgers have utilized their major league depth on the trade market already by sending Zach McKinstry to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for relief pitcher Chris Martin.

The Dodgers might be willing to part with Trayce Thompson since he would be one of the players whose playing time would be affected most by Soto's arrival. They could also use the impending return of Dustin May from Tommy John surgery in their favor in the Soto talks.

Dave Roberts has five solid rotation options in Clayton Kershaw, Julio Urias, Tony Gonsolin, Andrew Heaney and Tyler Anderson. May could be viewed as expendable to add another major league-ready chip to the discussions for Soto to put the Dodgers past the Padres and Cardinals.

A potential Soto acquisition would give L.A. the best first five batting order in the majors. They could alternate left- and right-handed hitters between Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith and Soto. That would be a matchup nightmare for any opposing pitching staff.

Add in Gavin Lux, Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy at the bottom of the order and you have the potential for one of the most well-rounded lineups in recent memory.

An argument could be made that the Dodgers should keep May so they have two right-handed starters and four lefties available for the playoffs, and Thompson's right-handed bat could be crucial with so many lefties in the order.

Los Angeles is 12 games clear of the San Francisco Giants in the National League West, and it has enough power to win at least one playoff series without Soto.

However, the Dodgers have been programmed to win the World Series in the last decade, not just a measly playoff series.

The addition of Soto would make the Dodgers the clear favorite to win the NL pennant. The New York Mets have some back-end lineup issues, and the Atlanta Braves lack experience with some of their young pitchers in the postseason.

Landing Soto would prevent two other playoff contenders, San Diego and St. Louis, threatening the Dodgers over the next three months. And it would give L.A. multiple years of control with Soto in the outfield to go after a championship.

If you expand the World Series hopes further, Los Angeles needs a star-packed roster to contend with the New York Yankees or Houston Astros, if one of the two favorites come out of the American League.

With Soto in tow, the Dodgers would have the better overall lineup than the Yankees and Astros, and they would be able to match the star power of Aaron Judge and Yordan Alvarez in a best-of-seven series.

Houston might have the edge in pitching depth over the Dodgers, but the gap in depth is not as big as it was last week after Jake Odorizzi was shipped to Atlanta on Monday night.

Houston is riding with its young arms, including the returning Lance McCullers Jr., to get it through the postseason.

Not only would the Dodgers become the favorite to win the NL this year, but they also would hold that role for seasons to come as well since Soto comes with three years of team control.

Los Angeles' player development has been so strong over the years so there would be trust there that the farm system could be replenished after a second blockbuster trade in two years.

The Dodgers may not end up with Soto by Tuesday night, but they should at least make a big swing at acquiring him since they have the arsenal of players to do so and can win multiple World Series with the young superstar.