Veteran outfielder Tommy Pham is reportedly moving closer to a deal with the San Diego Padres, though the Chicago White Sox are still lurking in the background.
Per Bob Nightengale of USA Today:
The San Diego Padres and outfielder Tommy Pham are moving closer to reuniting on a one-year, $3 million to $4 million deal. Pham earned $8 million last season, including incentives, while helping lead the Arizona Diamondbacks to the World Series. He played for the Padres in 2020 and 2021.
The Chicago White Sox also have interest in Pham if his potential deal with the Padres hits a snag.
The reunion between Pham and the Padres makes perfect sense as the Friars entered spring training with only two outfielders on the 40-man roster, and have since converted a star shortstop prospect to the outfield.
The 36-year-old Pham has spent 10 years in the big leagues with the St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Padres, Cincinnati Reds, Boston red Sox, New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks. He helped Arizona get to the World Series a season ago and is a lifetime .259 hitter with 130 homers and 119 stolen bases.
Pham's previous stretch in San Diego was marred by inconsistency. He hit only three home runs in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and then hit 15 in 2021, which he has surpassed in five other seasons of his career.
If the deal with the Padres falls through, the pairing with the White Sox is interesting considering they already have Luis Robert Jr., Andrew Benintendi and a slew of other options out there, including Oscar Colas, Gavin Sheets and Kevin Pillar.
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