The San Diego Padres need starting pitching. The team cannot survive with its current staff, so something must be done.

To survive an entire MLB season, a team must have depth.

The San Diego Padres are in need of starting pitchers as the team continues to deal with issues.

In the winter, the team lost Nick Martinez, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and Blake Snell from last year’s rotation via free agency. A.J. Preller responded by dealing the team’s largest asset, Juan Soto, for four major-league-ready arms.

Minor-League pitcher Drew Thorpe was shipped to the White Sox for Dylan Cease. Michael King is solid and producing for San Diego, while Randy Vasquez and Johny Brito are both eating innings for the Padres. The trade has worked well for both sides, though the Padres did lose a superstar player.

Heading into the season, Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish were iffy at best. Both missed time at the end of the 2023 season with arm issues, which is a huge red flag. Neither went under the knife, as both decided to rehab their injuries and rest. Not surprisingly, both are currently on the I.L., and Musgrove is not expected to return until late in the season, if at all. Darvish was due back this week but is reporting elbow discomfort again.

This is not good.

Matt Waldron emerged this year with his incredible knuckleball, but both he and the before-mentioned King are under an innings limit of some sort. Neither pitcher has thrown more than 100 innings or so at the professional level. Each is approaching that total fast, and that is a big problem.

Dylan Cease remains the only healthy pitcher capable of throwing late into the season and into the playoffs.

Playoffs, you ask? Yes. That is the goal in San Diego. The veteran team is built to win now.

Pitching is needed. And it is needed now.

“We are definitely searching for starting pitchers,” a team official told EVT. Names and teams were not discussed, but the idea is clear. The Padres would like to add a starter or two to the current roster. That is the main objective right now for the franchise.

There are capable arms in the minors, but the majority of them are very young and a few years away from realistically contributing at the major league level. Robby Snelling, Dylan Lesko, Victor Lizarraga, and company need time. The bottom line is the Padres don’t need one arm; they need a few, and they need them to be proven pitchers.

So that leaves the trade market.

A.J. Preller and his staff are certainly not shy about trading for players. “If a deal makes sense, that is certainly the route we would go,” the same team official said. Preller and his staff are working hard, and there is no doubt a pitcher or two will be added in the coming weeks and months. If you are a Padres fan, this comes as no surprise. A.J. Preller is not shy about trades.

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.