The Padres are prepared to trade prospects this winter in order to secure its roster for the 2024 season.

The San Diego Padres will be very active this winter.

With a new manager finally announced, A.J. Preller and his staff will now focus on upgrading the roster.

In the media, there are rumors that the team would like to trim $50 million from its payroll. Nothing has been confirmed by the Padres, but their first significant move of the offseason did save the club somewhere around $5 million. Scott Barlow was traded to the Cleveland Guardians last week for Enyel De Los Santos. Barlow was set to make over $6 million in 2024.

The team may be on the lookout to trim payroll when needed, but all signs still point to the Padres remaining generous with their 2024 payroll.

They just may need to be a little creative with their money.

In the last few weeks, the focus of the team has been on acquiring starting pitching. Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish make up the current rotation, and each pitcher is coming off an arm injury. Behind them, the Padres have several young pitchers penciled in, but none are very appealing. Adrian Morejon, Pedro Avila, Reiss Knehr, Jay Groome, and Matt Waldron all come with significant question marks.

EVT communicated with the Padres office this week, and they explained the team is slowly returning back to normal after the loss of Peter Seidler. The owner and rock of the franchise will be greatly missed, and it is certainly understandable that the front office was still in mourning. The first order of business was to name a manager, and the club did that as Mike Shildt will be asked to guide the Padres back into the postseason.

With a new skipper at the helm, the team is focused on the roster. “We have several angles we are working on,” a staff member told EVT. They admitted the club has their ears in on multiple deals, but nothing was at any stage other than the inquiry stage. Expect the Padres to be front and center when it comes to several trade rumors. That is just the way they operate.

In attempting to determine what exactly the club was looking for this winter, EVT was told, “A few names would surprise you. We are always on the lookout for value. If that means moving prospect capital, then we will always consider whether the positives outweigh the negatives. Prospects are just that. Prospects,” the Padres official communicated.

It seems the club is discussing internally if they should trade some of their higher-valued prospects. I would not expect Ethan Salas’ name to be discussed, but you never really know with the Padres. They do always have the potential to shock you with a trade or signing. That is sort of A.J. Preller’s MO.

Payroll questions were not answered by the staff member. EVT was told that the situation is still fluid. Apparently, a lot of factors will determine what the payroll will be for the coming season. No matter what the Padres possess to spend, you can expect them to acquire talent and tweak the roster a bit. After a disappointing 2023 season, there are expectations for the coming season. A.J. Preller has pressure on him like no other time in his reign as general manager.

James Clark

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.