Insider Pitches Major Marlins-Padres Trade That Would Shake Up NL

The Miami Marlins could certainly help some contenders before the MLB trade deadline, as they have a handful of players who may be on the move in the coming weeks.

Of course, the biggest name of the bunch is Sandy Alcantara, the Marlins' former NL Cy Young award-winning pitcher who seems to have found his groove after a rough start in his first year back from Tommy John surgery.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic has named the San Diego Padres as a potential landing spot for Alcantara, and he has pitched a trade in which Miami would send the right-hander to the Padres in exchange for catcher Ethan Salas, shortstop Leo De Vries and pitchers Humberto Cruz and Braden Nett.

"It’s a steep price for the Padres, but if he’s moved, Alcantara will be the best pitcher traded at the deadline," Bowden wrote. "Dylan Cease and Michael King will be eligible for free agency after this season, so adding Alcantara would assure San Diego of an ace to lead its rotation into next year. Alcantara is signed through 2026 and has a $21 million team option for 2027."

De Vries, Salas and Cruz represent three of the top four prospects in the Padres' organization, and Nett is ranked ninth by MLB.com.

Whether or not San Diego would be willing to part with such a substantial package for Alcantara is anyone's guess, but the Padres have been struggling, falling to 5.5 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the NL West.

Taking that into consideration, San Diego could become desperate between now and July 31, much like last year when the Padres sent a massive package to the Marlins in exchange for closer Tanner Scott, who then proceeded to sign with the Dodgers in free agency.

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