There were two big Washington Nationals stories this week, believe it or not: Ryan Zimmerman retiring from baseball and the report that the Nationals offered Juan Soto a 13-year $350 million contract extension.

Soto is expected to hit free agency at 26. By then, he could very well be in line for the richest contract in baseball history. We recently ran a Twitter poll asking how confident fans are that the Nationals and Juan Soto can reach a long-term agreement, and the results were interesting.

We think that the Nationals have two options, and we all know what they are at this point.

Put all your money in

A lot of people that we have talked to about the Juan Soto contract believe that the Washington Nationals should make an offer that Juan can't refuse despite his latest statement saying: "But right now, my agents and I think the best option is to go year by year and wait for free agency."

We think that this is the best course of action for the Nationals. We aren't sure why the Nationals would think that prolonging and just improving subsequent offers one offer at a time would lead to the results that would ensure that Juan stays in Washington D.C. for the rest of his career.  It seems to be pretty clear that Soto has a number in mind and isn’t going to budge from that number, nor should he. Right?

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Soto and Scott Boras know Soto’s worth. If the Nationals are a bit confused about Soto's value a simple Google search will help the team get an idea. The Nationals will have to make Soto an offer he cannot refuse, one that will leave him with one of the highest AAV’s and highest total values in the sport. And he is completely worth it.

At the end of the day, the Nationals and specifically the Learners will have to make the decision on what direction the team should go in with regards to Juan Soto and they should do it soon.

Trade Soto for Prospects ASAP

This option isn't going to sit well with Nationals fans. However, it is the most logical one if Soto isn't open to signing a contract before he hits free agency, OR the Nationals aren't going to make an offer that he can't refuse. If the Nationals feel that they will not make the offer that Soto wants, the team should trade him now and get the biggest prospect haul that you can get. It is unclear what waiting for him to come closer to free agency will get you. The risk of injury and the total length of his team control will lower his trade value in the long term.

Related Article: Thankfully, the Nationals Finally Figured out the Catchers Position

Sure, we all know that Soto can and will put fans in the seats; however, this shouldn't guide Soto's strategy. If the Nationals are prepared to rebuild for the next few seasons, why not trade away one of the best talents in baseball for an absolute haul. We have seen what a year and a half of Trea Turner got the Nationals, imagine what they will get for three seasons of Juan Soto.

Do you think that there are any other options?