The San Diego Padres are trying to play themselves into being buyers, but there's a chance that GM A.J. Preller decides to sell andAll-Star closer Mason Miller is drawing tons of interest.
The last month for the San Diego Padres has them in position to buy or sell at the trade deadline, and the next few days are of the utmost importance for general manager A.J. Preller to decide.
The Padres looked destined to have another season around 90 wins and a playoff berth in a tough National League through the first month of the season, but a brutal stretch between May, June and into early July has San Diego’s record at 53-53.
It’s hard to dictate how the rest of the season will go as an executive of a middling team with a chance to get to October but also fall out of the race within a two-week stretch, but Preller has to decide in the next few days if he’s going to offload some bullpen pieces and a right-handed bat or add starting pitching.
All attention has been on All-Star closer Mason Miller and whether the Padres will trade Major League Baseball’s top closer just one year after parting ways with a haul to acquire him at the last deadline.
The New York Yankees have been the most popular team in his sweepstakes and desperately want to add him to their bullpen, but two sleeper teams have emerged as potential suitors and have farm systems that trump New York’s.
ESPN created 10 blockbuster trade ideas that would shake up the trade deadline, putting together monster trade packages from the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago White Sox.
“Milwaukee's farm system is so full, it's bordering on gluttonous,” Paul Hembekides wrote Tuesday.
“A return of Josh Adamczewski, Braylon Payne, Bishop Letson and Sal Frelick would be a healthy one for San Diego, while the Brewers get the opportunity to acquire baseball's best reliever -- one who can influence four pennant races -- without surrendering any of their top five prospects, according to ESPN's Kiley McDaniel top 10 list.”
Adamczewski (Brewers No. 6 prospect), Payne (No. 8), Letson (No. 10) and Frelick would give the Padres three outfielders and a right-handed pitcher in Letson. Frelick is currently dealing with a shoulder injury but it doesn’t seem to be a long-term concern.
If I’m Preller, I try to get one of Milwaukee’s top five prospects, especially considering Miller’s cost of MLB No. 2 prospect Leo De Vries last year. Miller is the best closer in baseball with several years of control – make Milwaukee pay up.
The next proposal comes from Bradford Doolittle, and he proposes a package centered around shortstop Billy Carlson (White Sox No. 3 prospect) or infielder Caleb Bonemer (No. 1).
“The Padres need to build out their system for general manager A.J. Preller's next spree, and the White Sox are a good match for San Diego in this regard,” Doolittle wrote.
Chicago doesn’t want to part ways with Bonemer and there were murmurs that they don’t want to trade any top 10 prospects, but for the right deal, they would. Adding Miller to a young and rising team like the White Sox would be worth a couple top prospects for sure.
