Padres, Dodgers Expected to Compete for $5.25 Million Pitcher at Deadline

A quintessentially excellent battle of two good teams, the Padres and Dodgers bring real levels of star power, elite pitching, future Hall of Fame talents, and the location aspect to make the rivalry one of the best in the sport.

Tim Britton, Aaron Gleeman, and Chad Jennings of The Athletic all pieced together a trade deadline piece outlining which players could be on the move. Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Andrew Heaney was a name specifically mentioned. Heaney, a veteran lefty with an assortment of breaking balls, has been connected to the Padres, the Dodgers, and the Arizona Diamondbacks.

"After so much inconsistency early in his career, Heaney has settled into a niche these past three seasons as a reliable No. 4 starter with an ERA just over four," The Athletic staff writes. "This is a guy who started three postseason games for the champion Rangers in 2023, and he looked like a free-agent steal for Pittsburgh until a couple of rough outings in late June ballooned his ERA. On the other hand, the strikeout rate has dipped quite a bit to below league-average, and the walk rate is up. He could make a playoff start for you, but you probably wouldn’t feel super comfortable about it."

Heaney is not the type of arm that will sit atop the rotation of any contender. However, as a guy that can eat up innings at a credible rate, he's your guy. Heaney will try to beat hitters with deception and mixing speeds. He's not possessing a league-average fastball at this point in his career. This may be a benefit for teams looking to mix in a quirky left-handed pitcher among a fleet of flamethrower righties.

In this case, Heaney would fit in the back of both the Dodgers' and Padres' rotations as a guy that could start a playoff game in a pinch.

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