Report: Padres expressed 'strong interest' in Trea Turner at trade deadline

The San Diego Padres already have one of the best shortstops in baseball in Fernando Tatis Jr. However, it appears the club was looking to add some depth at the position ahead of last month's trade deadline. 

According to FanSided's Robert Murray, the Padres expressed "strong interest" in All-Star shortstop Trea Turner before he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers last month. 

"A deal was never close, but Padres general manager A.J. Preller routinely explores trades for every big name," Murray wrote. "He held talks with the Washington Nationals on Turner and Max Scherzer, though one Nationals source categorized the discussions involving Scherzer as 'general back and forth.'"

Murray adds that it was unclear at the time where Turner would have fit into the lineup. However, Tatis has dealt with several injuries this season, and Turner would've been an easy replacement for him. Murray also mentions that the Padres might have shifted Tatis to the outfield if he was healthy and played Turner at shortstop. 

The Padres, Dodgers and San Francisco Giants were in a tight race for the National League West lead before the trade deadline, but now San Diego is 7.5 games behind first place and the Dodgers are primed to grab the top spot after adding both Turner and Scherzer this summer. 

Turner, 28, is hitting .250/.400/.375 with a stolen base in three games for the Dodgers this season. In 99 total games, he's slashing .321/.370/.518 with 18 home runs and 49 RBI. 

Although the Padres were unable to land Turner, they added Daniel Hudson, Adam Frazier and Jake Marisnick last month. However, the club failed to add a starting pitcher, which is something it desperately needed with injuries to Dinelson Lamet and Chris Paddack.