Padres Insider Says Friars 'Must' Make One Specific Trade

As July's MLB trade deadline, the San Diego Padres' urgency to plug holes on their roster increases, especially at one glaring positional need.

The left field position for the Padres is one of the worst in the league. Jason Heyward, Brandon Lockridge, and Tyler Wade are the current platoon, though due to Heyward's injury, Gavin Sheets has been filling in at times.

The main trio should strictly represent defensive depth, but the roster construction has forced them into an everyday starting position.

Neither of those three in the platoon can produce even league-average offense, presenting an offensive momentum black hole.

MLB.com Padres insider A.J. Cassavell labeled the left field stop as one that the organization must upgrade before the deadline.

"The Padres' offensive production in left field has increased since they began playing Gavin Sheets there. But, as you may have guessed, that means their first-base/DH production has suffered," Cassavell wrote in a story about the Padres' needs.

"Their top priority should be adding another bat to a lineup that features a handful of superstars -- but also a couple of glaring holes. There's no better place to do it than left field, a traditionally bat-first position, where it shouldn't be all that difficult to find a decent No. 8 hitter."

In terms of weighted expected on-base average and run creation, the Padres' left field ranks dead last. The Padres' WAR at the position is the second worst in the league, only behind the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The defense, to their credit, ranks third in the left corner of the outfield, highlighting the value that the current options bring on that end.