Manny Machado Questions Delay in Padres' $3.9 Billion Sale

Fans of the San Diego Padres would love to see president of baseball operations A.J. Preller get the opportunity to make a splash at the MLB trade deadline.

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal believes that the team's new owners, José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones, will give Preller the financial leeway to do just that.

The only problem? The record-breaking $3.9 billion sale is still pending formal approval from Major League Baseball, leading even the players themselves to question the lengthy process.

“Yeah, what’s going on with that?” Padres third baseman Manny Machado told reporters on Monday. “I thought it would’ve been done by now. I’ve spoken to Feliciano a little bit, so I know he’s eager to get on with it and help the city and help this team win. I don’t know what’s taking so long. But it’s been a weird year for everyone in this clubhouse.”

The sale from the Seidler family to Feliciano and Jones was announced in early May, but the deal, which set a record for the highest-ever valuation for an MLB team, is contingent on approval by at least 22 of MLB's other 29 owners. While The Athletic's Dennis Lin reported that some thought that vote might happen in June, the current hope among Padres officials is reportedly late July.

"That could complicate things related to San Diego's deadline planning," Lin wrote. "For now, John Seidler remains the club chairman, and if the sale doesn't close before Aug. 3, some people around the team believe there won't be much room to take on additional payroll."

The team's inability to add to their payroll could be a limiting factor at the Aug. 3 trade deadline. However, if the season continues to spiral, the Padres might not seek to be overly aggressive at the deadline anyway.

After a harrowing eight-game losing streak, including five losses to the division rival Los Angeles Dodgers, the Padres sit at 46-47 entering the final series before the All-Star break They sit 5.5 games back of the final wild-card spot, with five teams ahead of them.

"Yeah, I mean we're frustrated too. Can't take away from your frustration, but I promise we are doing all we can here to get these wins," center fielder Jackson Merrill said recently regarding the Padres' slide. "Like I said, just have faith in us. It's baseball; you never know when s--- can go the other way, so we could heat up here really soon."

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