Padres Urged to Trade for $65 Million All-Star Slugger in Blockbuster Move

The San Diego Padres have found themselves in the middle of a very close National League Wild Card race. 

With several teams within two games of the final Wild Card spot, the Padres could find their secret weapon ahead of the trade deadline. ESPN’s David Schoenfield suggested that San Diego trade for Atlanta Braves designated hitter Marcell Ozuna.

The Padres do not have a full-time DH. Gavin Sheets would likely take on that role but he has been playing left field after signing Jason Heyward did not work out well. San Diego released Heyward, leaving most of the workload to Sheets.

Instead of Sheets, the Padres have placed third baseman Manny Macahdo and shortstop Xander Bogaerts in the DH position to give the pair a break from defense. Although that strategy is wise for preserving Machado and Bogaerts health, it has not been productive for their offense.

San Diego’s designated hitters rank in the bottom six of all MLB teams in batting average (.228), slugging percentage (.393) and on-base percentage (.298). Meanwhile, Ozuna has a higher on-base percentage (.367) than any other Padres’ player this season.

The two-time National League Silver Slugger will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, meaning he could just be a rental for the Padres. The Braves exercised his $16 million club option for 2025 that was included in the four-year, $65 million contract he signed in February 2021.

Ozuna, who will turn 35 in November, was awarded the Braves’ Edgar Martinez Outstanding DH of the Year award in 2020 when he had the best season of his career. He slashed .338/.431/.636 in 60 games.

Ozuna is currently battling through a slump, where he slashed .159/.254/.221 and struck out 32 times in his last 30 games. However, he put up 39 and 40 home runs in the last two seasons and the Padres could benefit from adding another powerful bat in their lineup.

Last season, the Dominican Republic native returned to the All-Star game for the first time since 2017. This season, Ozuna finished sixth in the NL All-Star voting for designated hitters, earning 229,214 votes as of the second ballot update on June 23. 

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