Sources: Nationals see Mets as one of a few fits for Juan Soto, would ask for three prospects

LOS ANGELES -- The Mets, like just about every MLB team on Sunday, are focused on the amateur draft and have yet begun to consider in earnest the possibility of trading for Washington Nationals superstar Juan Soto. That will change this week, when they and others will decide whether to pay the extraordinary prospect cost.

The specifics of that cost are starting to become clearer, though it is still very early in this process, and teams tend to begin by asking for the moon. According to industry sources, Washington views the Mets as one of a few teams that can match up on a Soto trade, and would likely begin by requesting two or three of New York’s best prospects, plus more.

Concretely, that would mean a package like Francisco Alvarez, Mark Vientos, Brett Baty and more for Soto. Perhaps the Mets could swap in Ronny Mauricio, the shortstop prospect who is not quite in the class of the other three, in place of Vientos or Baty.

The Yankees’ equivalent would be something like Anthony Volpe, Oswald Peraza and Ken Waldichuk plus more for Soto.

Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo did not immediately respond to a text message seeking comment. A person familiar with his thinking said that trading within the National League East would be a potential complication, but likely not a deal breaker if the Mets are the best match.

For the Mets, Soto’s sudden availability, which comes after he rejected a 15-year, $440 million offer from Washington, will force them to think hard about the direction of the franchise. Steve Cohen, Sandy Alderson and Billy Eppler all agree on the importance of retaining homegrown (and inexpensive) talent, and and have previously had no intention of trading Alvarez, Vientos or Baty.

Soto scrambles that calculation because he is a better player at 23 years old than just about any prospect could hope to become. Is Alvarez, who the Mets love, really going to have the impact on a team that Soto would?

Prospect evaluation is only part of what the Mets will have to consider. With most of the starting rotation and Brandon Nimmo set for free agency, as well as Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz needing substantial extensions soon, paying Soto could test even Cohen’s willingness to spend.

Half a billion dollars for Soto, plus all the other Mets who need to be re-signed, plus the idea of taking on a bad Nationals contract like Patrick Corbin or Stephen Strasburg to lower the player cost?

That’s a lot for any team trying to build a sustainable winner. But Soto is such a big star -- and still so young -- that the Mets will have to think about it this week.