Padres Editorial: What Would it Take to Bring Joey Gallo to the Padres?
The Rangers have no sense of urgency to deal Gallo, but if they can find upgrades to their team (that is certainly playoff worthy) then they will easily listen to offers. Tyson Ross and Derek Norris would do it for the Rangers, but the Padres would simply need more in the deal. Ross and Norris are two proven major league players.
Both are in the prime of their career and each is under team control for the next two years. Ross becomes a free agent after 2017 season, Norris is due for free agency after the 2018 season. That is two proven talented players under team control and at a decent price to boot.
Joey Gallo is a top 10 prospect in the game, but he is no guarantee to succeed. He has issues and needs refinement, but for a Padres team looking towards the future, he would be a huge addition. The Padres could easily guarantee him 150 plus games in the major leagues. Dealing Norris hurts the team, but he can be replaced with the emergence of Austin Hedges. Losing Tyson Ross on the other hand would be really difficult for the Friars. He has the work ethic and intangibles you seek from an ace, but he hasn’t put them all together yet.
Tyson Ross’ value is at an all-time high right now. He could conceivably make more than $150 million dollars in free agency if he has two solid years. He has unbelievable stuff and could command a huge pay day on the open market. The Padres would hate to lose him. He would not be easily replaced and the team would be without a young ace which would leave them with a hole in that area. If Ross was in the deal to the Rangers, the Padres could want a pitcher back in return. A pitcher who can eat some innings in 2016. There are some options.
Derek Holland makes an interesting case. He is due $10 million dollars for the 2016 season and then has two team options for the 2017 and 2018 season. He can be re-signed for $11 million or be bought out for $1.5 million dollars. Taking on Holland would help the Rangers with Ross’ salary of $9.625 million and Norris’ salary of $2.925 million for the 2016 season. Holland is a decent lefty, but has had some injury issues in recent years. If the Rangers want to worry about money then a Ross, Norris and lower prospect for Gallo, Holland and high level prospect deal could be worked out. Holland could eat some innings for the Padres and provide a left-handed arm in the rotation. Losing Ross would be a hard pill to swallow for Padres fans. In the end, both teams would have to be satisfied. Satisfied to the point where each thinks they got the better end of the deal. Not an easy task to accomplish.
Jurickson Profar is the typical name you associate but I don’t believe the Padres are targeting him. The team is committed to Alexei Ramirez for the 2016 season and the Padres are also very happy with the development of Javier Guerra in the minors. The Panamanian youngster has homered in both games of the WBC Qualifier in which he has participated. He looks to be a legit talent and the Padres are clearly comfortable with labeling him as the future shortstop. Profar would be nice, but the Rangers value him highly. With his injury issues his value is still low at the moment. He also just doesn’t have an available spot on the Padres roster. Cory Spangenberg seems set to play everyday at second base, so Profar could not play there either. It just doesn’t make sense for either team. Not at this point.
The Rangers have many young prospects that would be nice additions for the Padres though. Nomar Mazara, Dillon Tate, Yohander Mendez and Andrew Faulkner all make sense for the Padres. Mazara is a left handed hitting outfielder, while Tate is the Rangers #1 pitching prospect. He is a power throwing right hander that is a season or two away from being ready. Mendez and Faulkner are left handed pitchers that have high strike out numbers. Both are solid mid level prospects.
Joey Gallo is shooting for the moon for the Padres. The two teams have the players to pull of a MONSTER deal, but it remains to be seen if the teams are even actively having discussions. Things could escalate very quickly between these two teams so stay tuned. Joey Gallo to the Padres is not a far-fetched idea. It depends if the Padres are willing to pay the price and also if the Rangers are willing to go the extra mile. Stay tuned, baseball season hasn’t even started and the potential of trades is in the air. This will be an interesting 2016 season for the Padres as the try to transition their team into a winning franchise that continually puts out a quality effort. There will be changes, it is just a matter of time.
James was born and raised in America’s Finest City. He is a passionate baseball fan with even more passion towards his hometown Padres. Editor-In-Chief of EastVillageTimes.com. Always striving to bring you the highest quality in San Diego Sports News. Original content, with original ideas, that’s our motto. Enjoy.