Possible Starting Pitcher Trade Options for the San Diego Padres
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The San Diego Padres have a very young staff presently. Youth is nice, but the team does need a veteran presence in the rotation. The Padres have already been linked to several pitchers this winter. Here is a look at a few more who could be an interesting choice for the Friars.
Joey Lucchesi, Eric Lauer, Jacob Nix, and company give the Padres a youthful rotation presently.
You mix the current group with Chris Paddack, Cal Quantrill and Logan Allen (who are close to making their debuts), and you have something very special.
Then there is the next group of pitchers like Michel Baez, Nick Margevicius, Adrian Morejon and Luis Patino that should be here by the 2020-21 season. There are even more young hurlers beyond this group of men. The Padres have pitching on the way and we have only begun to see them arrive at Petco Park.
It is nice to have young pitchers, but you do need some veterans mixed in to get the most out of a staff. Noah Syndergaard, Corey Kluber, and Sonny Gray would be great additions to the team, but nothing has happened in terms of acquiring each potential front-end rotation starter.
There are other options for the team on the trade market though. Here is a look at some. These are not the sexiest of pitchers, but each could provide exactly what the Padres need in 2019; an innings eater.
Trade Targets
Arizona appears ready to trade some of their assets in a rebuild. Paul Goldschmidt was dealt to St. Louis last month as the Diamondbacks restructure their team. A.J. Pollock is set to leave via free agency. Patrick Corbin signed with the Nationals in December. There are some rumors that the team has explored the idea of dealing Robbie Ray. Their main concern with the team seems to be dealing Zack Greinke, but Ray could also be dealt if a trade partner meets the D-Back’s asking price.
Ray is a strikeout pitcher who has yet to really find himself in the game of baseball. He went 6-2 last year with a 3.93 ERA and a 1.350 WHIP in 123.2 innings pitched. Ray struck out 165 in that time, but also walked 70 batters. He constantly works deep into counts and struggles to go late into games. With a minor adjustment or two, Ray has the ability to be a special pitcher. He has Darren Balsley reclamation project written all over him. The lefty has two years of service time under his current deal so there could be some interest.
The Cardinals have pitching depth and could be persuaded to deal Wacha. He fell out of favor last year in St. Louis while battling injuries and could be attained at a reasonable price. The right-handed pitcher is in the final year of his contract and could be motivated to have a productive year in 2019.
The 2015 all-star was 8-2 last year with a 3.20 ERA in 84 innings for the Cardinals. He has great size at 6-foot-6 and provides the capability of being an innings eater. That is something the Padres need, but he is only signed for one year. If the price is right, he could be an option.
The Orioles have to be thinking about the future. A player like Dylan Bundy could fetch a decent prospect haul. The 26-year-old, right-handed pitcher went 8-16 last year in 171 innings pitched. He struck out 184 in that time as stuff has never been his issue. He struggles from time to time with consistency, but could be a player worth an investment if you are San Diego.
Bundy has three years of control left, which is very appealing to the Padres. He would not be an easy trade target though. Baltimore could use quantity when it comes to prospects. A package of three-for-one might do it. But the Padres wouldn’t necessarily need to part with their best prospects. This is an interesting option for both teams.
The Padres could explore the idea of taking on Danny Duffy from the Royals provided Kansas City eat some of the $46 million owed to Duffy over the next three seasons. At $15.33 million per season, the rate is not an issue for Duffy, it’s the production he has provided. He can look really solid at times, but the reality is he has never thrown more than 179 innings in a season.
Duffy was 8-12 last year with a 4.88 ERA and a 1.490 WHIP. He has struggled with injuries as well so he wouldn’t be an ideal trade option for the Padres. If the price is right and the Royals eat enough salary, then he could be a decent trade candidate. The Padres would need to be satisfied that the 30-year-old can make it through his remaining three years on his contract as well.
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 agree with some of the comments. Alex Cobb, Zack Greinke or Jordan Zimmermann are good candidates. If Myers is included in the trade it would make it better.
Well, that is some heaping pile of garbage of an article. You ignore 3 starters already on the Padres and one that will return in June or July. Other than Ray whom the Diamondbacks have said is not available in trade, you only talk about trading for garbage pitchers. Why is it that all of your articles are void of common sense and completely miss the obvious?
How does an often injured pitcher suddenly become an innings eater? Wacha is the antithesis of an innings eater. He has never finished a season in the majors without at least one trip to the DL and missed more than half the season to injuries in 2018.
Bundy had a 5.88 ERA. No pitcher gave up more home runs. He has gotten worse each of the past 3 seasons. Garbage.
Like Bundy, Duffy is in his 3rd straight season in decline. His 2018 ERA was 4.88 while playing his home games in the best pitchers park in baseball. He is owed $46 million.
Erlin, Mitchell, and Strahm are all ahead of Nix on the depth chart and Lamet will return mid-season. Diaz has been stretched out to start. Kennedy is also available to start. Perdomo will be in AAA as a fall back.
If all they are going to trade for is #5 starters, why bother? Fact is they don’t need any of the guys you mentioned. they have that kind of pitcher in droves. What the Padres need is a top of the rotation starter. At a minimum a guy that is a proven #2.
Why don’t you tell me how you really feel?
Despite how harshly he viewed the article he is right in stating the need for and ace or a least a 2. If the Pads can’t get that then it’s time for the youngsters to step up like Allen and maybe Paddock. Really looking forward to Strahm potentially crossing over into a starters role. Ray would be a nice get but probably not going to happen.
I think a more realistic trade option from BAL is Alex Cobb. He would probably require lesser prospects and has 3 years of control. He has a career ERA of 3.75 all of which is in the band boxes of the AL East, and he is only owed $14M per year the next two years and $15M in 2021. Perhaps it would be possible to work some trade centered around Myers and some money to balance it a bit for BAL.
Nice article. Of course the issue with SD is whether any of those pitchers will be around when the club is good. If the team arrives in 2021, it sort of decreases the value of trading for a guy with only 1 or 2 years of control. At the start of the off season it seemed like the Padres were going to be very busy, and still might be, in turning over the roster.
If all we want is an innings-eater we might have kept Richard. No, the problem with this group is that they mostly suck. If we are going to get better we have to add better players. Unless we bite the bullet and trade some top prospects, as in a Cleveland trade, we’d better look at guys like Mike Leake, Sonny Gray and Greinke. Not to say they are a perfect fit, but their career ERAs are 4.03, 3.66 and 3.39. This is the caliber of pitcher that would improve a team.