Regrading the first Juan Soto trade after James Wood's promotion

The Washington Nationals have called up outfielder James Wood, who will make his debut Monday at home against the New York Mets. Wood is ranked as MLB.com's third-best prospect in baseball.

In hindsight, this may not be AJ Preller's greatest move. In 2022, the San Diego Padres thought they were bringing in the final piece of their puzzle to contend for a World Series when they traded for Juan Soto.

Just two years later, Soto is on the New York Yankees, and with Wood making his debut Monday, the Nationals now have three players on their active roster including left-handed pitcher Mackenzie Gore, shortstop CJ Abrams, and Wood. Let's take a deeper look into how this trade faired for both clubs and provide a regrade.

The Nationals get an A in the regrade of the Juan Soto trade

Going back to a CBSSports.com grade for this deal, they rewarded the Padres an A, while the Nationals got a D. The Nationals acquired Robert Hassell III, right-handed pitcher Jarlin Susana, Wood, Abrams, Gore, and first-baseman Luke Voit.

First, the only blemish in this deal for Washington was after spending brief time with the Nationals and Brewers, Voit is now playing for Olmecas de Tabasco in Mexico. Two prospects are still in pursuit of venturing through the farm system, as Susana is now in Single-A Fredericksburg, and Hassell III is playing in Double-A Harrisburg. After battling some early injuries during his Nationals tenure, Hassell III is expected to make his debut next season in 2025, according to MLB.com.

Add this to the fact that Washington has three players from the trade on their major-league roster, and you've got as good as a trade as you could ask for. Wood has been tearing it up in Triple-A, putting together a .353/.463/.595 slashline with a 1.058 OPS, 10 home runs, 37 RBIs and 10 stolen bases. All of this was done in just 52 games played for the Rochester Red Wings. Looking at the trade today, Mike Rizzo knocked it out of the park with this trade and gets an A grade.

The Padres get an F in the regrade for this trade

Since joining the Padres in 2014, A.J. Preller has made some questionable moves as the president of baseball operations for the club. Some good, some bad, but in this case an absolute whiff of a trade. Looking back at the 2022 Padres, they appeared to be a move or two away from being a serious contender for a World Series title. Instead, just two years later, the two players they acquired in this trade -- Soto and Josh Bell -- both find themselves on new teams. Soto is now with the New York Yankees, while Bell is on the Miami Marlins.

It was known at the time that the move was risky, but even the basic baseball fan thought this was a home run for the Padres. Instead, the closest they got to a World Series was losing in five games against the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2022 NLCS.

Since they lost out on so many prospects, and they don't have either player they acquired in the first Soto trade, the Padres get an F for this trade.

This article was originally published on fansided.com as Regrading the first Juan Soto trade after James Wood's promotion.