For a second straight offseason, Dylan Cease enters spring training as his team’s staff ace … and also as perhaps the most prominent trade candidate in the sport. The Padres, strapped for cash all winter, have made next to no additions to a roster that needs help in left field, at designated hitter and in the final few spots of the rotation. Trading Cease would only exacerbate their rotation need, but he’s the type of arm who could return an immediate fill-in (albeit one with a lower and less established ceiling) in addition to young prospects.
The Padres have entertained offers on the majority of their impending free agents under similar lines of thinking. Cease, Michael King, Luis Arraez and Robert Suarez (opt-out) have all seen their names pop up on the rumor circuit this winter. Cease probably has the most trade value of them all, given his track record, durability, reasonable $13.75MM salary, high-octane arsenal and the potential for an acquiring club to not only add a Game 1 or Game 2 playoff starter to its roster but also to potentially recoup a draft pick in 2026 if/when Cease rejects a qualifying offer in November.
A Cease trade at this juncture would in many ways run parallel to last offseason’s trade of Juan Soto, whom the Padres shipped out for immediate MLB help (King, Kyle Higashioka) and slate of MLB-ready (or close to it) arms: Randy Vasquez, Jhony Brito and top prospect Drew Thorpe. The Padres moved Thorpe before the season even began, using him as the headline prospect to acquire Cease in the first place. Now, they could conceivably trade Cease for a lower-ceiling/less-established rotation arm and some additional pitching depth and/or a young outfielder.
Exact parallels for a Cease swap are hard to come by, though Anthony Franco recently took a look at some general frameworks that the Padres could seek in a piece for Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers. Corbin Burnes, who went from the Brewers to the Orioles in exchange for MLB-ready help in the infield (Joey Ortiz) and on the pitching staff (DL Hall) — plus a competitive balance draft pick — is the clearest comparable in recent memory. Burnes was more consistent but also a bit more expensive ($15.637MM to Cease’s $13.75MM).
It’s feasible to think the Padres could command a big league-ready arm and outfielder to fill two holes on their roster while simultaneously freeing up some cash to backfill some of the innings lost in a Cease trade. Any deal shipping him out will bring back a lesser arm(s), and whatever savings the Padres secure could be used to further address the back of the rotation. San Diego probably isn’t going to give up the picks necessary to sign Nick Pivetta, but the free-agent market still has Andrew Heaney, Kyle Gibson, Cal Quantrill, Spencer Turnbull, Ross Stripling and Alex Wood, among others.
Alternatively, any money saved via trading Cease could be put toward taking on a chunk of a pricey starter’s contract. Marcus Stroman, Jordan Montgomery and Steven Matz are all buy-low candidates but all could probably be had with the current team picking up some of the bill.
Let’s take a look at some of the best fits for Cease based on a variety of factors including team need, payroll availability, luxury tax status and what type of young/inexpensive pitching and outfield help said theoretical trade partners could offer…
Orioles: The Orioles have made several additions to the rotation this winter, but they’re generally lacking ceiling. Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano would’ve been a higher-end pair to sign back in 2019 than in 2025. They could both still provide some average or even slightly better-than-average innings in bulk, but it’d be a surprise if either looked like a clear playoff-caliber starter at season’s end. Baltimore’s current rotation includes that pair, Zach Eflin, Grayson Rodriguez and Dean Kremer. It’s a solid enough quintet on paper, and they could get late-season help from Kyle Bradish and/or Tyler Wells as that pair mends from a UCL surgeries performed last June.
Baltimore hasn’t replaced Burnes, who signed a six-year deal in Arizona, with an arm of comparable quality. Cease would be just that. Between Kremer, Cade Povich, Trevor Rogers and Chayce McDermott, the O’s have a collection of inexpensive arms who could step into the back half of San Diego’s rotation. The prize for the Padres in a trade with Baltimore would probably be the bat acquired. The Orioles aren’t giving up Coby Mayo or Jackson Holliday for one year of a starter, but Heston Kjerstad once again looks like he’s a man without a clear path to playing time. The O’s could’ve penciled him in to replace Anthony Santander, but they instead signed Tyler O’Neill. Kjerstad turns 26 this month, has nearly a year of MLB service and hasn’t been given a full-time look. The O’s have touted outfielders like Enrique Bradfield Jr. and Dylan Beavers on the rise behind him, plus Colton Cowser already in the majors.
Red Sox: Boston hasn’t made the big free-agent splash that many expected, but it’s hard to say that any team that acquired Garrett Crochet hasn’t invested in bolstering the rotation. Crochet joins Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello, Kutter Crawford, free agent signee Walker Buehler and (eventually) a returning Lucas Giolito in a deep and talented Red Sox rotation mix. You could argue the Sox don’t need to further augment the group, but Buehler is a rebound candidate and Giolito could be on some kind of set workload. Even if that’s not the case, a September (and hopefully for Craig Breslow & Co., October) rotation scene including Crochet, Cease, Giolito, Houck and Buehler could be overpowering.
Crawford wilted considerably down the stretch, but he has four years of control remaining and is earning just $2.75MM this season. Depth arms like Quinn Priester, Richard Fitts and Cooper Criswell could all hold appeal to the Padres as well. None of that group has reached arbitration. Criswell is controlled for five more years. Priester and Fitts can be controlled for six. The Sox aren’t giving up Jarren Duran or Ceddanne Rafaela for a year of Cease, but would they consider selling high on Wilyer Abreu? They could turn to an outfield stopgap like Randal Grichuk or Mark Canha to give them a right-handed bat while leaving the door open for uber prospect Roman Anthony to seize a regular job sooner than later.
Twins: The Twins’ interest in Cease is a head-scratcher at first glance, if only because Minnesota is in a similar payroll crunch to the Padres. However, as the offseason has gone on, it’s been reported that Minnesota might not actually need to cut payroll and might even have a couple million to spend. The Twins could shed some money in other trades, perhaps shipping out Chris Paddack ($7.5MM), some of Christian Vazquez’s contract (one year, $10MM remaining) and/or utilityman Willi Castro ($6.4MM). A trade with the Padres could also send a bit of money to San Diego, depending on which pitcher(s) and/or outfielders are included.
The Twins have Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, Simeon Woods Richardson and Paddack in the rotation at present, with top prospects David Festa and Zebby Matthews already having made their major league debuts. Other arms like Andrew Morris and Travis Adams aren’t terribly far from getting a look. The Athletic’s Dan Hayes recently suggested that the Padres would probably want Ryan or Ober to headline a deal. Ryan seems like a bridge too far for the Twins. Ober is earning $3.35MM this season and has three years of club control remaining. Any of Woods Richardson, Festa and/or Matthews is pre-arbitration. The Twins have young outfielders like Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner to pitch. Larnach is making $2.1MM. Trading one of Larnach or Wallner could open a clearer path for top prospects Emmanuel Rodriguez or Luke Keaschall to step into the big leagues. Keaschall has played more infield, but the Twins’ infield is already quite crowded, so his eventual home could be in the outfield or in a multi-position role.
Braves: With Spencer Strider on the mend from UCL surgery and expected back sometime in May, the Braves don’t necessarily have a glaring rotation need. Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez, Strider and Spencer Schwellenbach will create a formidable top four — health permitting. Righties Ian Anderson, Grant Holmes, Bryce Elder, AJ Smith-Shawver and Hurston Waldrep are in the mix for starts while Strider is out and give Atlanta ample depth for the fifth spot in the rotation should each of the top four be healthy early in the summer. Drue Hackenberg, a 2023 second-rounder, climbed three minor league levels and posted sharp results across the board in 2024, providing even more depth.
That glut of arms for what ostensibly appears to be one final rotation spot gives Atlanta plenty of options on the trade market. If the Padres want to acquire multiple lower-end but MLB-ready arms in exchange for Cease, the Braves are a potentially prime trade partner. President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos has implied that any rotation addition would need to be a clear upgrade over Anderson and Holmes, who are out of minor league options and thus virtual locks to make the roster. Cease checks that box emphatically. And with Jurickson Profar now in the outfield, Atlanta could at least consider the possibility of including Jarred Kelenic in a deal as well. Kelenic’s value is way down after a middling 2024 season, but he has four seasons of club control remaining and — once Ronald Acuña Jr. is healthy — minimal path to everyday at-bats on a roster with Profar, Acuña and Michael Harris II.
Cubs: As with the Braves, the Cubs have a deep collection of arms competing for what looks to be one rotation spot. Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, Jameson Taillon and Matthew Boyd are all rotation locks. Candidates for the fifth spot include Javier Assad, Jordan Wicks and Ben Brown — with top prospect Cade Horton on the rise as well. Assad is probably the favorite thanks to a 3.40 ERA through his first 294 big league frames, but below-average command and a subpar strikeout rate lead to less-appealing marks from alternative metrics like FIP (4.49) and SIERA (4.66). The Cubs also signed veteran Colin Rea on a one-year deal, giving them a seasoned No. 5 option or swingman in the bullpen.
On top of the plethora of young arms, the Cubs have two top-100 outfield prospects in Owen Caissie (an original Padres draftee who went to the Cubs in the Yu Darvish trade) and Kevin Alcantara. Both are essentially MLB-ready. Alcantara has already debuted. Chicago has Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker in the outfield with Seiya Suzuki at designated hitter. There’s no path to 2025 playing time for Caissie or Alcantara if the current outfield is healthy. Plus, Happ and Suzuki are signed through 2026 while Crow-Armstrong is controlled all the way through 2030. Dealing from their stock of outfield talent to further cement themselves as the NL Central favorite and add a clear playoff starter makes good sense. The Cubs already made a big one-year bet on Tucker. That ought to embolden them to further push all-in on 2025. At the very least, they could expect 2026 draft compensation for Tucker and Cease, lessening the sting of some of the prospects they surrender.
Mets: President of baseball operations David Stearns doesn’t seem to want to commit long-term to starting pitchers, making Cease a natural target. He’d immediately ascend to the top of the rotation in Queens, giving the Mets the clear Game 1 type of starter they presently lack. Cease, Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea would make a nice top three, with Frankie Montas, Clay Holmes, David Peterson and Paul Blackburn as options to round out the staff … unless, of course, Peterson is one of the names headed back to the Padres in a theoretical trade package. Like Cease and Michael King last year, he has two seasons of club control remaining. He’d give the Friars an experienced arm to take up some of Cease’s innings, and the Mets have plenty of additional names to offer on top of that.
Tylor Megill doesn’t look to have a clear spot on the roster, barring injuries. He looks like more of a depth piece but could add some innings to the San Diego rotation. Top pitching prospect Brandon Sproat is the type of near-MLB arm who could serve as a headliner. The Mets also have appealing young hitters like Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuña. All three are infielders, but they’ve all at least tinkered in the outfield as well. All three have the athleticism to handle left field. Mauricio is recovering from an ACL tear and might not be ready for Opening Day, while Acuña struggled in the minors last year and could need more seasoning. Regardless, they could be early-season options, while someone like Baty might be an option to step right into left field if the Padres feel a spring training of work there could ready him for a full-time look in the majors.
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There are, of course, other clubs that have rotation needs and would surely inquire. The Angels seem like an obvious fit but don’t necessarily have the collection of young arms and/or outfielders that the above teams possess. Jo Adell already has three years of MLB service and has yet to establish himself. Taylor Ward is only controlled through 2026 and is making nearly $8MM. The Angels need controllable young arms just as badly as the Padres.
The Blue Jays make some sense, as a team aggressively pursuing 2025 upgrades, but they’ve made those upgrades without sacrificing much in the way of prospects — perhaps in a nod to a potential Plan B if this year’s run at contention doesn’t pan out.
The Rangers, Brewers and Guardians could all make varying degrees of sense, but all three are running up against payroll issues at this point. Texas could try to send Jon Gray and/or Leody Taveras back to San Diego, but they’d need to include significant prospects to offset that pair’s lack of long-term value. The Brewers haven’t signed a free agent to a fully guaranteed deal and seemingly have no money to spend. The Guards haven’t rented a veteran starter like this at any point in recent memory and may be tapped out after re-signing Shane Bieber, Austin Hedges and Carlos Santana and signing Paul Sewald. Perhaps the Tigers could try to package some younger arms (e.g. Casey Mize, Matt Manning, Keider Montero, Ty Madden) and a young hitter like Justyn-Henry Malloy, but their recent addition of Jack Flaherty seems like their final move in the rotation.
Broadly, it’s pretty easy to make a case for Cease on quite a few teams. He’s a Cy Young-caliber arm at his best and is being paid less than the collection of aging veteran arms who signed one-year deals worth $15-16MM this winter (Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Charlie Morton, Alex Cobb). The best fits, at least from our vantage point, appear to reside in Baltimore, Boston, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Chicago (Cubs) and New York (Mets), however.
I think the Orioles and the Red Sox have made their moves for the rotation, at least until July. I dont think the Twins will give up the young talent needed to get a deal done
Mets, Cubs and Braves I think make sense. Mets could include Peterson, Baty and something else. Cubs could do Cassie and Wicks. Braves not sure would need to do some digging.
Padres would want Brown or Horton in this possible trade scenario to help them compete in 2025.
I don’t like Horton or Brown for the Padres because it’s unlikely they can carry a full starters workload in 2025. And the Cubs have too many lefty starters while the Padres need a lefty. But the Padres need a better lefty than Wicks perhaps they could use the money saved to get one.
The Padres would be gambling on the innings that Jordan Wicks, Ben Brown and Cade Horton could provide to their 2025 rotation. All were limited last season with extended injuries.
Horton has the least AAA experience but the highest ceiling. He also is the only one of the trio who had a significant arm injury last year as he works back from a subscapularis strain in his right shoulder which is the largest muscle in the rotator cuff. Because of his ceiling, Horton is also the least likely to be traded by the Cubs in a potential Dylan Cease trade.
If the Padres want certainty in their 2025 rotation, Javier Assad would be their best bet. They might then be good with one of RHP Brown or LHP Wicks.
As for their LF bat, San Diego would likely prefer a reunion with former top prospect Owen Cassie but might settle for Kevin Alcántara. A potential larger deal with the Cubs could also include Padres closer Robert Suarez who could share late inning duties with recently acquired Ryan Pressly.
Yeah i agree with all that.
Keep in mind the Padres would save a lot of money by moving Cease and they can use that money to fill the rest of their holes. They don’t have to fill them all with this deal.
what other holes would you fill with the Cease money. How would you fill the hole Cease leaves in the rotation?
I think Peterson is the guy that could at least potentially fill that. If not him I don’t know.
Given the statements from AJP this past weekend that the team “has a championship core”, ….”plans to compete for playoffs”….”will add a couple arms, a couple bats”., if they trade Cease, it’s hard to see how that wouldn’t be in conflict with those statements. It will be interesting to see what happens I guess
Wicks, Assad and Alàcantara. All 3 could open with SD on opening day
Cubs are not going to give up Brown and Horton. Caissie most likely stays with Tucker on a rental and no legit option other than Suzuki’s errors
That return is pretty solid. Chances are Alàcantara becomes a solid regular with his ability to play CF plus solid speed and power.
Cool, let’s check on with the Mets.
Surely that can beat that.
Idk about that. A top 100 plus 2 SP.
I see this as a payroll drop plus adding depth at a cheap cost. For a team that has over paid plus locked up that payroll into Ntc it gives cost control that is needed
For the Cubs renting is fine. They are all in and have Horton, Brown and Caissie to back fill for Tucker, Presley and Cease (if they do it).
Having too much quality youth becomes a problem when you have nowhere to put them. All it does is decrease their value by sitting on them.
Padres already asked the Cubs for a deal with Shaw plus Assad and Brown. Why would they take less now when all the TOR starters are of the market?
Over market value. That is why. You can want all day. Doesn’t mean that teams will pay it.
His market was made last year with the Burnes trade. Plus the Tucker trade. Tucker is a top 5 player in baseball and holds more value than Cease.
Good assessment but I don’t think Cubs will move Caissie, Horton, or Brown in a Cease trade. Possibly why those talks don’t seem to have picked up any steam. Cubs would be happy to send small package for salary relief but I can’t imagine they go with anything more than Alcantara/Canario, Wicks/Assad and a lower level guy. We’ll see. Cease would be a great addition but Cubs can’t go all-in for 2025 the way the Dodgers are built. They need a team built to consistently reach the playoffs for the next 5-7 years.
They haven’t picked up because preller asked for Shaw +
Especially for a rental. They already gave up a top 100 plus a starting 3B and a pen arm that was fringe for a top 5 player in baseball as a rental
Cease is not more valuable than Lopez in the Twins who was tied to the Cubs. That is a guy that can get a return centered around Horton and add in more talent
It is always going to be about control paid for. Rentals hold more impact in July as the teams needing it are more dire in need. Right now teams are not going to over pay.
Aaron, maybe that is why Preller asked for Shaw plus Assad and Brown previously. I doubt Preller is in a settling mode.
We all know the Dodgers will be his future clubhouse
He’ll slide in nicely at #5 between Glasnow and Gonsolin. Until Kershaw gets back. Then he’s #6
Concentrate and ask again.
I thought cease was going to be a brave last year and I still think the braves are the clearest choice since they’ve done nothing his off-season
I was stunned when he didn’t go to the Braves last year. He seemed like the kind of guy they would trade for and sign to a team-friendly extension.
Boras clients don’t do team friendly anything.
They seem to have forgotten Kelenic is out of options, and hasn’t proven he belongs in the Majors. I can’t see him holding any value to the Padres. If he continues to not hit, they can’t even send him down.
@stymeedone: Kelenic isn’t out of options. He has one left.
Technically he has two options… if you count broadcasting.
If he doesn’t end up a Met then something is wrong. He’s the ace they lack.
If the Mets can make the trade without including Sproat or Peterson I’d be thrilled. Sproat would be a no-starter for me. I’d also really like to see the Mets move Megill to the bullpen full time.
I think Peterson would be okay. I agree no sproat but would be okay with Tidwell. Franco failed to mention that Acuna had a very good albeit brief MLB deputy. I think Acuna would fit in for 2B and then move Cronenworth to 1B shifts Avarrez to DH and add Bader at 1 million like Profar to play Left or center moving Merrill back to left for one year. Pads save 8 million.
So Tidwell, Peterson and Acuna plus below the tier.
Peterson is the guy that the Padres would want. He’s Michael King 2.0. No guarantee it works out like King did but it might and that’s all the Padres can hope for.
Maybe Peterson, acuna baty. My guess is the Mets will likely want to hold onto Peterson.
Padres likely will want Jett Williams.
Mets really dont need him if they get another starter. And they have Sproat perhaps ready by July.
The position players are tough not sure there is a perfect fit. Padres could use a lefty outfielder but thats not really what the Mets have except maybe Baty.
It’s important to keep in mind the Padres don’t have to fill all their holes in this one deal. They will have saved money dealing Cease and can use that money on whatever else they need.
No but they aren’t going to trade cease and only fill his spot with someone worse.
You aren’t trading Cease and getting someone better. So……
Haha if we don’t get something better we don’t trade cease…sooo
If you don’t trade Cease or someone else then the team doesn’t have the money to fill out the rest of the roster champ.
Do you say but Preller asking price has been so high. If he really wanted to trade him he could have to one do the 25 teams listed here today.
He can sign some bats and pitchers for very little as the season approaches.
sounds logical!
Simm, were you at Fan Fest? Not only did the FO on the panel that included Greupner. Preller, and Shildt say that the Padres could continue to have a payroll where they are today, but that they have the payroll flexibility to add for the right players. They blew an aircraft carrier size hole in the rumors that the Padres have to lower payroll.
Again, I wonder what exec will walk into their respective fan fest and say ‘our payroll is too high to sustain long term’ and blow their bargaining position out of the water.
I also want to hold on to Sproat and Tong. Any bats should be available except Jett. Any other pitchers including Peterson are fine with me.
They can’t. At least one of those two.
At least we went one day without an article begging the Padres to trade Cease.
I wonder if AJP knows how desperate the world is for him to trade Cease?
More like the world knows how desperate AJ is to trade Cease. To the no delusional at least.
if he was desperate, he’d be traded by now
The lack of Padre tears on here was also quite refreshing.
and yet here you are fop, right where AJP wants you
Yes I am. Grown men behaving like teenage girls is fascinating !
Just not sure what AJ has to do with it. You will have to explain that one to me.
how do you I’m not a teenage girl?
Well that would explain it !
Great point Little Miss.
or an elderly widow?
No chance. They are way too tough for this type of embarrassing behaviour.
or Elon Musk
Massive possibility.
I thought they planned to “add an arm or two” !?
AND a bat or two!! Clearly AJP is waiting out the market in hopes of those arms and bats getting desperate enough to take 1-year low ball deals. If that doesn’t look promising by a week from now I can see him taking the best offer out there for Cease.
Your logic doesn’t follow. If he isn’t able to sign any arms won’t he need Cease more, rather than less?
How much are the Padres paying MLB trade rumors for this advertising
even when they’re not winning the offseason, they’re winning the offseason
Wouldn’t mind him on the Cubs but a short term extension would be needed and only if it doesn’t cost the Cubs ONKC. I like Kevin Alcantara and Alexander Canario but I would be way more comfortable trading one of those two plus 2 lower level prospects for Cease. I’d personally prefer Michael King
If Hoyer really wants to seriously compete, this is the move to make. That power RH slotted between Steele and Imanaga, would most definitely upgrade that starting 5 in a formidable way. It’d be tough, but if he could get Cease with Caissie and Assad or Wicks, he should pull the trigger. Caissie may or may not be for real. He’s a prospect til he’s not and with their outfield set, he’s not gonna get to prove it in Chicago this season. Just my opinion, but I say strike while the irons hot.
problem is, the iron’s not hot. Nor is the Stove. The Padres are in win-now mode and have no interest in parting with an ace for prospects. I know social media is saying otherwise…
Yeah trading Studs/vets for prospects has never been Preller’s M.O. which makes sense considering he’s the most active prospect trading GM/Pres in the game.
Well, they traded Soto for prospects. And apparently they have financial constraints and need to shed some salaries.
Cease isn’t signing a short-term extension with anyone little buddy XD XD XD
I would not trade three years of Ober for one year of Cease, much less if the ask is Ober + other players. Obviously Cease has the better track record but not so much better that it outweighs the team control, and I would be absolutely not shocked to see Ober put up a better 2025 than him
Where is Brew? 12 in 12 days?
make it a baker’s dozen!
Look up. It appears the Os are your team
Of if i’m the Cubs, I don’t trade ONKC for the simple fact that Tucker will not be coming back next year and you can pencil him in as a starter next year after he debuts in a lesser role on the shuttle to get his feet wet this year.
I could see maybe alcantara, triantos, and one of either assad/wicks as an offer that SD would consider. Cubs could even throw in some cash knowing SD is cash strapped and that’s the only reason they would trade him to begin with.
If I’m San Diego, I don’t trade him unless it’s for ONKC and assad or wicks plus a lottery ticket or comparable trade from another team, I might even be a touch low here.
SD could keep him, not cripple the rotation and get the comp pick themselves next year. Without him they don’t advance in playoffs anyways, so if you trade him, you go full fire sale and try to compete again in a few years when the dodgers shenanigans are addressed by a new CBA and the ownership issues should be clearer.
Cubs could even just wait to trade for a playoff pitcher at the deadline, no rush to do it immediately. They should be competing for the division this year as they currently are rostered.
But if they want to get to the nlcs or beyond, they will have to add sooner or later.
I think Baltimore is signing OFers to trade Kjerstad + for Cease
Now we’re cooking
can Kjerstad pitch?
Yes, in the 9th inning up more than 10 runs.
Kierstad hasn’t exactly looked like an all-star. That “plus” had better be a darn good player. Even in exchange for a rental.
Andrew Heaney, Kyle Gibson, Cal Quantrill, Spencer Turnbull, Ross Stripling and Alex Wood were all predicted to earn in excess of $10 million this offseason. Why trade a TOR starter that makes $13.75 million only to turn around and spend $10 million of the savings on back of the rotation garbage?
Because apparently there’s nothing else to write about at MLBTR?
There’s absolutely no shot that anyone predicted that for all of those names.
Stripling and Wood is laughable.
Because they are “cash strapped”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Quantrill is never making 10m next season. Not sure more than 2 of them will make more than 10m or even 10m.
A bit of hyperbole from Pads, but close, Heaney was projected at 2/24. Gibson at 1/13, Quantrill at 1/12. The other 3 were below $10 million. Turnbull at 1/7. I haven’t seen anything on Stripling or Wood.
Because you want to get the payroll to around 200 and you have holes to fill. Tear inducing news I know, but that’s what the people with Padre contacts are saying.
Fappert, no one on the Padres has said anything about a specific payroll number. In fact, they just said at Fan Fest they have no specific payroll number, could sustain where it’s at now, and can increase it for the right player. Where did you pull $200 million out of?
Trading a cheap Ace when you are wanting to compete and fresh off your best season in 26 years makes so little sense especially when the rotation can not sustain the loss.
Keep him and collect a pick with the QO or trade him in July if the team isn’t competitive.
To trade him now only makes sense if it’s a clear overpay and they’re getting a tremendous package.
Save this, and re-post it in the next dozen or so Cease trade rumor articles later this week.
Papi – pretty much what I’ve been saying all along. Same for King. I can live with Suarez going for a good return because they can cover his spot. They can’t cover 1 or 2 in the rotation.
Man, you guys just cannot stop talking about a Dylan Cease trade.
The speculation never ceases.
Seems like a Cease / Stroman swap could make sense.
Yankees eat $9.25M of Stroman’s deal, pay all of Cease’s $13.75M salary, Padres pay a measly $9.25M for Stroman’s services, Yanks basically pay $23M for Cease and are off the hook from Stroman.
I get that it’s not perfect and it still adds $6.5M to the Yankees payroll, but I assume that’d be more palatable than forcing themselves to find playing time for a player (Stroman) that they don’t want and who feels rejected by the team and likely no longer wants to be there.
Yankees paying 110% on top of whatever also
That would be great…for the Yankees.
Now it’s time to leave Yankees fantasy land and return to the real world.
Why would it be so bad for the Padres? They save $4.5M and get back a pitcher with upside.
That’s not going to happen
I think Cease is more likely to move at the deadline if the padres are out of it. The padres are reported to have had a huge asking price for him this off season meaning I don’t think they really want to trade him.
Very true. Though you never know if someone steps up.
I have a feeling Baltimore is signing OFers to trade Kjerstad + for Cease
That makes sense on the Balt moves. It also probably means they think Kjerstad is a bit of fools’ gold and want to deal him soon among the youth they have.
Yeah for a frugal organization to spend legit money on Tyler O’Neill instead of saving 40m and giving Kjerstad a shot gives this Padre fan pause. Of course it wouldn’t be a 1-1 but still.
They really need an ace in that rotation sooner or later because if they don’t, it will be another playoff exit before the ALCS.
Seeing as how most O’s fans don’t want to see Mayo traded even though Preller has been asking for the top prospect in all of the rumors for Cease, let me propose one that has more quantity and less quality at the top.
Kjerstad, McDermott, Povich, Young, Anderson.
Just one former top 100 prospect. McDermott and Povich have some MLB experience, but not good results in small sample sizes and neither are Top 100 prospects. Young is a MLB ready relief prospect. Anderson is a bat-first catching prospect in A+ ball.
Padres throw in Cole Paplham, Garrett Hawkins, or similar.
I could see Kjerstad +, not sure about plus 4.
Those are all very reasonable trade proposals. It has already been posted what the Padres have asked for when the Cubs and Red Sox talked to them about Cease at the Winter Meetings. Preller has not been reasonable. He has been asking for deals with Shaw and Mayer as the headliner plus multiple MLB ready arms.
With all of the top pitchers already off of the trade and free agent markets, Preller has no reason to lower his asking price.
The question becomes will one of the teams mentioned here decide to up their offers, which are probably very similar to what Steve outlined in this article, to the point that Preller says ok, or will Cease start the season as the opening day starter for the Padres?
I am going with Cease is a Padre opening day, but with Preller you never know. Maybe a third team jumps in and makes it worth it for the Padres.
Aloha Web, I give Preller credit though over my Cubs FO. In that he trades for players with a lot of value that have controllable years. For example, Soto. 1.5 seasons with San Diego, then a very good haul in trading Juan to NYY.
On the other hand, Jed in his walk off year is trading away potential talent for rentals. I don’t mind this if the organization is 1 player away from going deep into the post season. But the Cubs are more than a “Tucker” away, imho.
Preller has both Cease and King to deal from. He’s more experienced, imho, then Hoyer. I can see him saying to Jed they want Assad and Shaw first. Let it simmer, come back to Jed and say okay we’ll take Assad and Caissie. And watch Jed do it. Again, I don’t blame San Diego in asking for “the moon.” But Hoyer concerns me as a fan, finally getting some good home grown talent and he’s trading them for rentals.
We’ll see what happens. Now the rumors are that Jed’s licking his chops to sign Bregman, thus Shaw doesn’t get a chance to start at 3B, smh. Take care now. Mahalo
Why would they trade him when they are trying to contend and he fills their biggest need? Is it because of his postseason?
There is only one right answer. For an overpay.
METS METS METS! Sign & trade.
Still say best deal on the table would be
Cease to Red Sox for Casas, Yoshidas contract, and Perales, Dobbins, Fitts for taking Yoshida
Cease to Twins for Vasquez contract, Wallner or Keaschall, Morris and for taking Yoshida Lewis and Eeles
Definitely think padres should entertain the idea of taking back a bad contract with the intent of trading Suarez and moving Adams to the close role to get under the tax line.
I think Red Sox deal makes more sense cause they pick up a 1B and LF plus some controllable pitching.