After Kristaps Porzingis Jersey a succe sful 2024 campaign that saw the Padres return to the postseason despite cutting payroll and trading , president of baseball operations A.J. Preller is doubtle sly looking to improve his team over the winter. To that end, he told that hes looking to addre s holes in the corner outfield, the starting rotation, and behind the dish. None of that is especially surprising considering some of the players the Padres lost to free agency this winter, namely left fielder , starter , and catcher . Moreover, starter will mi s the 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, leaving the rotation without much depth. With that said, the Padres have not yet been linked to many free agents to fill those holes. Theyre interested in starter (per ), but at this point, so is just about everyone else. When it comes to catchers, theyre starting to run out of options, with Higashioka, , , and off the market and with the Cubs. As for corner outfielders, the Padres havent been strongly connected to anyone yet; Preller told he hasnt closed the door on a reunion with Profar, but thats pretty much it. Similarly, the Padres have expre sed in bringing back , although the infield seems to be le s of a priority. After all, the team already has an internal option to replace Kim at the keystone: can play more often at second base and can play more often at first. Bolstering the bullpen isnt at the top of Prellers to-do list either, but recently included the Padres on a list of suitors for right-hander . While the Padres lost to free agency, they still have a pair of imposing back-end relievers in and . and also enjoyed strong breakout seasons in 2024, while was solid in his first taste of MLB action. Even so, theres no such thing as too much bullpen talent, and Loisiga is the kind of high-upside arm it cant hurt to check in on. Due to numerous arm injuries over the past three years (most recently a torn UCL), hes unlikely to sign for multiple years or much money. However, he was dominant the last time he was healthy in 2021, to sing 70 2/3 innings with a 2.17 ERA. He flashed a 98 mph sinker and nasty sweeping curveball in a handful of outings earlier this year, and its po sible hell be back from his internal brace procedure in time for Opening Day. So, why might the Padres be particularly interested in a buy-low free agent like Loisiga? Perhaps its the same reason they havent linked to many other free agents, even at areas of greater need. writes that San Diegos payroll will likely fall somewhere in between last years final tally of $169MM and the current estimate of $210MM for 2025. In other words, Preller might need to get some cash off the books before can start spending. One idea to help the Padres reduce payroll thats recently been picking up steam is trading . According to Acee, they have indeed discu sed the idea with other teams at the Winter Meetings. Its not clear how serious those discu sions are; some of Acees sources suggest the Padres are actively shopping the right-hander, while others suggest theyre merely open to offers. Needle s to say, Cease isnt a player most contending teams would consider trading. According to FanGraphs, he was worth 4.8 WAR in 2024 and 17.2 WAR over the past four seasons. Thats not the kind of production thats easy to replace at any price, let alone his $13.7MM salary. That said, this wouldnt be the first time Preller has traded a star player while remaining competitive.Perhaps hes confident the Padres will land Sasaki. Alternatively, he could be planning to trade for ; the Padres have been to the White Sox ace. Those might be the only two options for San Diego to replace a top-of-the-rotation pitcher like Cease at a lower salary. Indeed, without Sasaki or Crochet, its hard to imagine how trading Cease wouldnt set the Padres back. After all, Preller himself said that adding a starting pitcher was a priority this offseason. BeyondCease, , and , the Padres rotation is all question marks. struggled in his first season with San Diego, while quickly slowed down after a hot start in 2024. Dealing Cease could help the Padres fill other holes on the roster, but without a frontline starter to take his place, such a move might just be one step forward and two steps back. John Starks Jersey
After Kristaps Porzingis Jersey a succe sful 2024 campaign that saw the Padres return to the postseason despite cutting payroll and trading , president of baseball operations A.J. Preller is doubtle sly looking to improve his team over the winter. To that end, he told that hes looking to addre s holes in the corner outfield, the starting rotation, and behind the dish. None of that is especially surprising considering some of the players the Padres lost to free agency this winter, namely left fielder , starter , and catcher . Moreover, starter will mi s the 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, leaving the rotation without much depth. With that said, the Padres have not yet been linked to many free agents to fill those holes. Theyre interested in starter (per ), but at this point, so is just about everyone else. When it comes to catchers, theyre starting to run out of options, with Higashioka, , , and off the market and with the Cubs. As for corner outfielders, the Padres havent been strongly connected to anyone yet; Preller told he hasnt closed the door on a reunion with Profar, but thats pretty much it. Similarly, the Padres have expre sed in bringing back , although the infield seems to be le s of a priority. After all, the team already has an internal option to replace Kim at the keystone: can play more often at second base and can play more often at first. Bolstering the bullpen isnt at the top of Prellers to-do list either, but recently included the Padres on a list of suitors for right-hander . While the Padres lost to free agency, they still have a pair of imposing back-end relievers in and . and also enjoyed strong breakout seasons in 2024, while was solid in his first taste of MLB action. Even so, theres no such thing as too much bullpen talent, and Loisiga is the kind of high-upside arm it cant hurt to check in on. Due to numerous arm injuries over the past three years (most recently a torn UCL), hes unlikely to sign for multiple years or much money. However, he was dominant the last time he was healthy in 2021, to sing 70 2/3 innings with a 2.17 ERA. He flashed a 98 mph sinker and nasty sweeping curveball in a handful of outings earlier this year, and its po sible hell be back from his internal brace procedure in time for Opening Day. So, why might the Padres be particularly interested in a buy-low free agent like Loisiga? Perhaps its the same reason they havent linked to many other free agents, even at areas of greater need. writes that San Diegos payroll will likely fall somewhere in between last years final tally of $169MM and the current estimate of $210MM for 2025. In other words, Preller might need to get some cash off the books before can start spending. One idea to help the Padres reduce payroll thats recently been picking up steam is trading . According to Acee, they have indeed discu sed the idea with other teams at the Winter Meetings. Its not clear how serious those discu sions are; some of Acees sources suggest the Padres are actively shopping the right-hander, while others suggest theyre merely open to offers. Needle s to say, Cease isnt a player most contending teams would consider trading. According to FanGraphs, he was worth 4.8 WAR in 2024 and 17.2 WAR over the past four seasons. Thats not the kind of production thats easy to replace at any price, let alone his $13.7MM salary. That said, this wouldnt be the first time Preller has traded a star player while remaining competitive.Perhaps hes confident the Padres will land Sasaki. Alternatively, he could be planning to trade for ; the Padres have been to the White Sox ace. Those might be the only two options for San Diego to replace a top-of-the-rotation pitcher like Cease at a lower salary. Indeed, without Sasaki or Crochet, its hard to imagine how trading Cease wouldnt set the Padres back. After all, Preller himself said that adding a starting pitcher was a priority this offseason. BeyondCease, , and , the Padres rotation is all question marks. struggled in his first season with San Diego, while quickly slowed down after a hot start in 2024. Dealing Cease could help the Padres fill other holes on the roster, but without a frontline starter to take his place, such a move might just be one step forward and two steps back. John Starks Jersey