The Padres, Once Again, Steal the Deadline Headlines

There’s reckless driving, then there’s going 130 mph the wrong way down a one-way street. Padres GM A.J. Preller is the one behind the wheel, texting and changing the music.

San Diego is no stranger to making noise at the trade deadline. From trading for Juan Soto to paying a massive price for relivers, A.J. Preller is going to do whatever it takes in order to best position his team for a playoff run, prospects be damned.

While borderline unhinged, he’s earned the right to do so. When you draft and develop as well as the Padres have you can afford to take big swings year and year after year. Replenishing the farm system is no tall task for this organization.

San Diego entered the deadline day three games up on Cincinnati for the last Wild Card spot. The Reds added to their team but did not do nearly enough to keep pace with the Padres. In fact, they acquired two players – Laureano and O’Hearn – who were perfect fits for the Reds.

The roster facelift certainly fills a number of holes while also improving their depth. However, will it be enough to finally avoid playoff disappointment?

The Biggest Deal of the Day

Top 100 prospects have been somewhat rare in recent deadline deals. Top 25, even rarer. But a top 10 prospect? That’s exactly what the Padres surrendered by trading SS Leo De Vries (JB No. 7), along with three pitching prospects (Braden Nett, Henry Baez, and Eduarniel Nunez) to the A’s for elite closer Mason Miller and starting pitcher JP Sears. That’s the definition of a deadline blockbuster.

No matter what type of player De Vries develops into, I like this deal for the Padres. They take one of the best bullpens in the game and add a strikeout artist with an elite fastball to the mix.

Come October, the Padres will be able to afford giving back of the bullpen arms a day’s rest simply due to the amount of talent they have.

I think the plan for Miller is bigger than a shutdown role out of the bullpen. He’ll play that part for now, but stretching him back out into a starter is likely the long game. With four more years of control, Miller could turn into an Ace in San Diego.

Of course, there’s injury risk. Miller was originally moved to the bullpen due to multiple injuries, which makes the deal somewhat risky. However, if he does end up just being a bullpen arm, you get four years of one of the best out there.

Adding Sears is not a throw-in, either. Sears has pitched to a 4.95 ERA and 4.96 FIP and has proven to be at least a decent back-end arm. With three years of control after this season, San Diego now has reinforcements for Dylan Cease walking and Yu Darvish/Joe Musgrove aging.

Buying from Baltimore

Baltimore’s underwhelming season became the Padres’ advantage. First baseman/DH Ryan O’Hearn and OF Ramon Laureano came west in exchange for P Boston Bateman, P Tyson Neighbors, P Tanner Smith, INF Cobb Hightower, INF Brandon Butterworth, and UTL Victor Figueroa.

Everything but the kitchen sink.

Adding O’Hern is a bit redundant, in theory, with Gavin Sheets still on the roster. After a hot start Sheets has cooled to a .562 OPS in July and the Padres were not going to cross their fingers and hope for a bounce back.

O’Hearn immediately fills the DH spot and gives the Padres a strong side platoon bat, slashing .283/.374/.463, 13 home runs, and a 134 wRC+. He lengthens the lineup but also could slide up the order without missing a step if an injury occurs.

Laureano has had a career resurgence, slashing .290/.355/.529 with 15 home runs and a 144 wRC+. Although he has been more of a short-side platoon option in recent years, Laureano has actually hit righties better than lefties this season.

San Diego no longer has to roll out a cast of AAAA talent in left field. Laureano can get the lions share of starts, and if he starts to trend back to career norms can slide into a platoon role with Sheets.

Adding these two bats makes the lineup have a completely different feel. The drop off after Xander Bogaerts is no longer a collection of 30-year-old minor leaguers. Having more power added helps, but adding both a righty and lefty bat can make opponent managers think twice about their bullpen decisions.

Rounding Out the Roster

The two splash moves were only part of a busy day for the Padres. They also added catcher Freddy Fermin, starter Nestor Cortes, and infielder Will Wagner.

Let’s start with Fermin, who might have made Padres fans rejoice due to the fact that Elias Diaz and Martin Maldonado are no longer the tandem. Fermin might not be a household name but I love the move to bring him in and give him a runway.

He’s been around league average offensively and although he will not bring much power he is automatically an upgrade from both of the Padres prior options. A plus defender with four years of control is a good get for San Diego.

Cortes is a fun piece to roll the dice on. A late bloomer, Cortes broke out in 2022 at 27 years old before injuries slowed him down. A funky lefty with good command, Cortes gives the Padres another arm to provide depth, once healthy, and eat some innings. They might want to bring him in and see if he is a player they would like to bring back as part of the future once his contract expires this winter.

Lastly, Will Wagner. A utility infielder who came to Toronto last deadline from Houston, hit much better than expected, and fell back to earth this season. While I don’t think this move makes much of an impact, a lefty on the bench to replace Tyler Wade and his 70 wRC+ is at least an upgrade.

Final Thoughts

I love that the Padres are not afraid to go against the grain. So many teams would have pulled back after a couple of years in which they came up short after aggressive deadlines, but not the Padres. They sat on their hands most of the winter, recognized their mistakes, and addressed those mistakes in a big way.

Like I said before, you can afford to give up prospects of this level and quantity when you draft and develop as well as the Padres do. Considering the age of their roster, going all in was always the best decision. You only have so many runs left with this core, and they are not wasting a single opportunity.