Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo denies he nor the team leaked details of contract talks with Juan Soto to the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.
“Unequivocally, it did not come from me for sure or our front office,” Rizzo told the Sports Junkies of 106.7 the Fan, per Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post.
“It didn’t help us in anything we were trying to do,” Rizzo added. “It didn’t help us keep a good relationship with Juan and it didn’t help us with leverage at the trade deadline. So it really hurts us.”
Rizzo added that he would like to find out who was the source of the leak.
Rosenthal first broke the story on July 16 that the Nationals made Soto available for a trade after the 23-year old turned down a historic, 15-year, $440 million contract offer.
Soto and his agent both expressed frustration that the contract talks became public.
āIt feels really bad to see stuff going out like that because Iām a guy who, my side, keeps everything quiet and try to keep it to them and me,ā Soto previously said, perĀ MASN Sportsā Mark Zuckerman. āThey just make the decision and do what they need to do.ā
Despite both sides not liking the fact the contract talks leaked, Rizzo admitted the Nationals are in talks with other teams that have “significant interest” in Soto. He also expressed he is not upset with Soto for turning down the $440 million offer.
“We made a historical offer to him and he turned it down,” Rizzo said of Soto, per 106.7 the Fan’s Grant Paulsen. “Am I upset with Juan Soto for doing that? No. I’ve known the kid since he was 15. I know him as good as anybody in the world. This isn’t personal. This is business.”
