Four days after tossing a quality start against the Padres, Robbie Ray is heading south to join them. 

The San Diego Padres are closing in on a trade to acquire left-handed starting pitcher Robbie Ray from the San Francisco Giants, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

Ray, 34, is in the final season of his 5-year, $115 million deal originally signed with Seattle. The Giants are reportedly receiving infielder Joniel Hernandez and right-hander Miguel Mendez in the trade. The Giants are reportedly taking on half of the money due to Ray for the remainder of the season (roughly $4 million), per Dennis Lin. 

The left-hander has spent the last three seasons in the Bay Area, pitching to a 3.54 ERA in 61 games (60 starts).

This season has been a resurgent campaign for the left-hander, as he has a 3.08 ERA in 22 games (122.1 innings). It hasn’t quite been Cy Young winner Robbie Ray in terms of performance this season, but Ray is always the kind of arm who will overperform what the advanced metrics will say. Ray has struck out 20.9% of batters faced this season against an 11.1% walk rate. Despite this, he has averaged over 5.1 innings per start this season. 

The Padres desperately needed a starting pitcher who could provide length as much as a fish out of water needs water, and with Ray being one of the higher-upside arms available, the Padres are giving up two of their top 10 prospects per MLB Pipeline.

Miguel Mendez and top international signee Joniel Hernandez are going back to San Francisco in the trade, per Jon Heyman. Mendez ranked as high as No. 4 on the EVT Padres Top Prospects list, but has gone through an injury-plagued season. A two-pitch starter with a developing changeup coming up on his Rule 5 eligible season, Mendez currently profiles better as a power reliever than a full-time starting pitcher if he is unable to get the walks under control.

Hernandez is the real steal in the trade if you ask me. One of San Diego’s top signings this international signing period, Hernandez posted a 120 wRC+ in the Dominican Summer League this season. Hernandez is a toolsy, athletic shortstop with projectability, though he is a long way away from the major leagues. 

The addition of Robbie Ray does not take San Diego out of the pitching market, but it gives the Padres some good reinforcements for a rotation in desperate need.

Diego Garcia

A born and raised San Diegan, Diego Garcia is a lifetime Padres fan and self-proclaimed baseball nerd. Diego wrote about baseball on his own site between 2021-22 before joining the East Village Times team in 2024. He also posts baseball content on his YouTube channel “Stat Nerd Baseball”, creating content around trades, hypotheticals, player analyses, the San Diego Padres, and MLB as a whole.

A 2024 graduate of San Diego State, Diego aims to grow as a writer and content creator in the baseball community.