Trade Rumors Should Swirl for Padres in Winter
The 2018 offseason should be interesting for the San Diego Padres, as trade rumors start to swirl. There is no doubt that the team will be active in talks, but whether or not they pull the trigger is another thing.
If the San Diego Padres want to make a splash during the winter, they have a roster that can do it. There are several areas on the team that represent an area of surplus talent. If A.J. Preller wishes to roll those dice and make a trade, he can do it.
You can be sure that in just about every trade rumor, the Padres will be linked to some regard. Especially if we are talking about trade rumors for an elite starting pitcher. Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom and Michael Fulmer were all linked to the Padres in some degree over the past few months.
With all this being said, the team could very well stand pat and not make a deal either. They could choose to instead cultivate the youth on the group and evaluate what they have for one more season. That might not be a bad idea as the Padres are still not close to being a playoff contender.
No matter what happens. This will be an eventful offseason.
Here are some areas to keep an eye on as the winter starts.
Catching Decision
There are several ways the Padres can go with this situation. With the addition of super-prospect Francisco Mejia, the Padres now have two catchers who are young and ready for everyday action behind the plate. Austin Hedges brings stellar defense and is a homegrown talent that has a relationship with all of the current staff. Mejia has a rocket arm, improving receiving skills and is a plus hitter.
Some feel the team would be best served to keep both backstops, as they compliment each other so well. The team will surely have that mindset, but if a trade happens they still have plenty of young depth in the farm system. Austin Allen, Luis Campusano, Blake Hunt, and Luis Torrens are in the minors and progressing. If Preller does choose to deal either Mejia or Hedges, there are players who can fill the void eventually for the Padres.
Crowded Outfield
Manuel Margot, Hunter Renfroe, and Franmil Reyes have been playing every day for the team lately. Next year, the Padres will have a healthy Franchy Cordero to add into the mix and there is always the possibility Wil Myers goes back into the outfield as well. Travis Jankowski also deserves praise for his efforts this season. They have multiple players who need to play every day and that is why there are whispers the team could explore a deal to possibly lighten their outfield load.
A trade seems likely, but you can never predict what A.J. Preller will do. There is some who believe that a Myers trade is likely, but the Padres probably would not get a huge haul in return as Myers still has a hefty part of his contract due to him in the future. Anything can happen here including the Padres bringing in another outfielder into the mix. The Padres have options and the outfield is a real question mark moving forward.
A Plethora of Pitchers
Joey Lucchesi, Eric Lauer, and Jacob Nix have established themselves this 2018 season. Each young hurler has penciled their name into the rotation for the 2019 season. Then there are pitchers like Chris Paddack, Logan Allen and Cal Quantrill who are all really close to major league service time. That’s not even mentioning Clayton Richard, Luis Perdomo, Brett Kennedy, Walker Lockett, Miguel Diaz, Colin Rea and Matt Strahm who are all possibilities for rotation spots to start the 2019 season.
The team could choose to part with a few arms to replenish other areas of the squad. One would expect that the Padres are in an eternal evaluation presently as the team makes determinations about the future. There are arms beyond all the names listed above as MacKenzie Gore, Michel Baez, Adrian Morejon, Nick Margevicius, Ryan Weathers, Luis Patino, and others are lurking. The Padres have a ridiculous amount of young arms and some should perform at a very high level.
There will be action this winter. The Padres will be linked to many free agents and liked to a few trade rumors. As the team gets better, Padre fans need to trust the baseball operations department as they scour the market looking for improvements for a team that must start playing better. I hope A.J. Preller is getting plenty of sleep now because these next four months will be a very busy time for him.
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.
I really don’t understand the Padres desire to trade for a starting pitcher when their minor league system is filled with pitching and their “pitch” to fans is to be patient because we are going to build with our minor league players. Why trade away the future for some old pitcher who is going to be a FA in a year or two while also taking valuable innings away from young pitchers? Doesn’t make sense to me. Like trading away a good prospect like De Los Santos for a one year rental of Freddy Galvis. Why? The team is better off losing and getting a higher pick in the draft. Why pay for Hosmer last year? I understand the Padres want a few veteran leaders who can lead the youngsters and teach them how to win, but you better find the right guys since these signings take up a big part of the payroll and/or they are going to be gone by the time the Padres minor leaguers finally all make up it up to the majors.
Also, I have very little faith in AJ’s trading prowess. He has made many poor trades and very few good ones. I’m not sure that he can discern which players are the best and should be retained.
What strikes me is how uncertain the roster really is.
Still some moves fairly need to happen.
1) Platoon Hosmer. He does not hit LH pitching, and we have a corner IF who does in Villanueva. Against RH pitching, Myers at 3b and Hosmer at 1b. Against LH pitching Villanueva at 3b, Myers at 1b and the ground ball king sits.
2) Stick with Myers. At least until there’s a better option at 3b. Otherwise his trade value is most likely close to zilch considering his salary. If he can be traded jump on it, but really, who’d want him?
3) Choose in the OF. Margot has been crappy for 2 years, how much longer do we stay the course? 2019 should be the last year here. Reyes has hit very well in a small sample size, but the guy is bad in the field. In the AL you can hide a glove like this at DH, but in the NL, and with 1b blocked….whew. Reyes is listed as 200 lbs, which is absurd. Olney calls it as 275. And at age 23. This body type does not age well. Hate to say it, but trade this guy to an AL team and avoid the coming defensive train wreck. That leaves Renfroe and Cordero as the corner OFs, Margot in CF and Jankowski as 4th OF.
On the FA front just say no. Usually there are two types of signings that make sense, the bargain basement type, and the elite player. The in between ones kill you. Since SD is a rebuilding team there is no need for any lesser signing, except perhaps bringing back Galvis on a short term deal, and there is no way the club can compete for Machado or Harper, or that they would want to come here.
Tanned T – while i generally agree with you, especially about the King of Ground Balls, I think Franmil needs to stay.
He leads the team in BA and has wicked power, two areas that the Pads really struggled with this year. I think trading Renfroe or Reyes would be foolish. Give Franmil another year, especially that bat! We have tooo many .250 hitters.
As for Margot, trading him would probably be best for our crowded outfield.
For the people that would rather not see Preller make any trades, it’s not going to go your way. We have too many prospects that need to be placed on the 40 man roster ahead of the Rule 5 draft that trades are an inevitability.
Definitely. Just won’t get back much.
Unless Preller can work a miracle or two. But I see us getting hit hard in the Rule 5 draft no matter what. There are too many 24-26 year old relievers that just won’t the roster cut.
I gotta tell ya, your plethora of pitchers is just that….not one winner in any shape or form.
You really think Nix is a shoe in for the rotation next year? I think he may start in AAA for more seasoning. Padres need to add a couple quality arms, at least one. I don’t want Richards back but if he can eat innings, fine.
I would like to see Lucchesi, Lauer, Paddack, Allen and Quantrill all in the rotation next year at some point later in the season if they are all healthy (cross fingers).
You forgot Dinelson Lamet in your starting rotation.
Lamet won’t be back in 2019
The offseason should be about trimming the fat, and trading both Yates and Stammen. Players that need to go include Pirela, Makita, and Mitchell. Both Yates and Stammen will be at their peak value this offseason, so they need to be traded.
When it comes to looking for a TOR starter the Padres should hold off until next season and look to trade with rebuilding team with a weak farm system (ex: Marlins, Orioles, or Royals) and target a solid innings eating pitcher such as Urena or Bundy.
The Mets will demand a King’s Ransom for DeGrom and Syndergaard — it’s not worth the price, and you know that Preller will overpay. As a Padres fan, I want to see all the young talent next year — Renfroe, Reyes, Tatis, Urias, Mejia, Paddack, etc. Only major move the Padres should make is signing a veteran pitcher in free agency.
Amen Roddy! Next will still be a rebuilding year, so no sense trading away prospect capital. 2020 should be the year the Padres start to make a real push for the playoffs, next off season is the year the Padres should be looking to deal prospects for Major League talent in my opinion.
I would rather they do not sign an FA Pitcher this off season as that will take away over 200 innings the Padres could use for internal development in 2019. I would like the Padres to sign a Gerrit Cole type Ace after the 2019 season or trade for an Ace at the trade deadline. I like Fulmer of the Tigers as he has 4 years of control and to trade multiple elite prospects the Padres need to have this Ace through at least 2023. I would form a package centered around Baez or Morejon as the lead prospect and add 2 to 3 other lower rated ones. Maybe Baez, Quantril and either Naylor or Austin Allen for Fulmer of the Tigers.