Today is his judgment day. The day his fate is decided by way of frantic cell phones, conference calls and e-mails. He begins the day a Washington National and, if the loud rumors ring true, by the 4 pm EST trade deadline he’ll end the day a Houston Astro, Minnesota Twin, LA Angel or Florida Marlin. And he hasn’t the least bit of say in the matter.

But no matter what, nothing can rattle Alphonso Soriano’s aura of cool.

Maybe it’s because he’s already making $10 million this year. Maybe it’s because he’s going to be a free agent after the season ends, and only then will he have a say in where he does and does not want to go. Or maybe he was just raised to appreciate all the good things that has happened to him already so far in his 31 years of living.

Or maybe he’s just “never scurred” of anything thrown his way.

He showed off his cool when he signed as a free agent with the Yankees in 1998, adding extra pressure to the Yankee 2nd base experience known as “the Chuck Knoblach experiment.” Once finding a regular spot in the lineup in 2001, Sori hit 18 home runs, racked up 73 RBI and stole 43 bases. The following year he hit even better, racking up 128 runs, 39 home runs, 102 RBI and 42 stolen bases.

After only one more year with the Yankees, his great play and cool earned him a place in history by way of the 2004 team swap from New York to Texas for a certain well-known $25 million a year superstar.

What did Sori do after his trade to the Rangers? He made the All-Star squad, and then took home the MVP honors.

In this past offseason, Sori was sent to Washington in a swap for Brad Wilkerson, Terrmel Sledge and a minor league pitcher. Before he even fielded one grounder in spring training, controversy immediately surrounded him when he refused to leave his second base position for the outfield. It took all of a few weeks for him to humbly head out to left field and carry on putting up the stats that launched him into superstardom while in New York.

And all throughout, when Frank Robinson called him out for not wanting to be a “team player” by switching positions, when the media blasted him as a “malcontent” for the same reason, and when he tried to get $12 million from an arbitrator but settled for $10 million, Sori maintained that trademark cool.

Maybe the loud, demanding fans in New York can rattle A-Rod, but Sori? Not a chance.

Hailing stats of 32 home runs, 64 RBI, 26 stolen bases, .284 batting average and a .583 slugging percentage, Sori is arguably the best all-around hitter in the American League. And the AL includes A-Rod.

When he figures out his next destination, by way of heavy rumors and finally, in the end, a brief talk in the office of Nats GM Jim Bowden, Sori will do what he’s always done — play it cool.

The team who acquires Sori will be receive a wonderful gift that we in Washington were blessed to have for our short period of time. In Sori they get a player who can play any position on the field, swing the bat in any position of the game, and a player who can help position an average team in playoff contention.

On Tuesday last week, following an 8-6 win over the San Francisco Giants, Sori made an appearance at a bar in downtown D.C. where I just happened to be.

As my friend shook his hand, I recognized him and smiled, paying my respects as well. I added in the quick, friendly request as a Nats fan, “I hope you get to stay in Washington, man.”

He was all smiles, absorbing the atmosphere of probably both the team win and what could’ve been one of his last days as a Washington National. He played it cool, as if there were no speculation on every sports network across the country that he was rumored to be going to every team with good baseball sense.

His reply was a very brief and simple, “Thanks.”

But his thanks, paired with a smile was genuine. His smile spoke louder than the music blaring, the ESPN rumors across the mini TV screens and the my own thoughts of how uneasy any of us other regular folk would be not knowing where our next career step may lie.

That is what makes Sori Sori.

His cool transcends pressure, rumors and speculation, no matter how positive or negative. It transcends the baseball nomad lifestyle. It transcends the average ball player’s superstardom. It transcends Jim Bowden’s arrogant smiles.

And it transcends that of us regular folk.

Even way before we even know about his riches or fame. Even as a celebrity among regular folk at McFadden’s last Tuesday when Sori looked, walked and talked just like everyone else.

But even if it is found out that, in fact, Sori is a regular person who puts on his pants one leg at a time like regular folks do, I still won’t be convinced.

He’s just too damn cool.