Padres' $73 Million Trade Target Unlikely to Be Available at Deadline: Report

With the trade deadline just one week away, the San Diego Padres are hoping to land an upgrade at catcher. 

The Padres currently have Elias Díaz and Martin Maldonado splitting time at the position, but neither have been able to produce offensively for San Diego. 

One trade target the Padres have reportedly had their eye on this season is Atlanta Braves All-Star catcher Sean Murphy. He has seven seasons of MLB experience and won the American League Gold Glove in 2021 with the then-Oakland Athletics.

He has already hit 16 home runs this season and has held an OPS above .830 in two of the three seasons he has spent with Atlanta. Murphy is slashing .236/.325/.505 in 66 games in 2025.

Murphy, who will turn 31 in October, is set to make $15 million a year for the next three seasons. He also has a team option for the 2029 season. 

The Braves were initially expected to be considering trading Murphy, as rookie catcher Drake Baldwin is putting together a breakout season.

Baldwin is slashing .285/.354/.481 and has hit 11 home runs in 71 games this season. He was the National League Rookie of the Month in May and is a frontrunner for the NL Rookie of the Year award, which would make him the first player from Atlanta to win the award since center fielder Michael Harris II won in 2022.

Despite the rise of Baldwin this season, Atlanta is reportedly still not willing to trade Murphy.  

ESPN’s Buster Olney said the Braves want to keep both Baldwin and Murphy to have a left-handed batter (Baldwin) and right-handed batter (Murphy). Atlanta can also have either of them playing catcher while the other serves as the designated hitter.