Because the Padres face payroll constraints amid an offseason the place beginning pitching has been at a premium, the opportunity of San Diego fielding curiosity on right-hander Dylan Stop emerged earlier at present with Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune suggesting that the membership is wherever from actively “attempting to unload” the right-hander to merely “open to provides” on him. This night, The Athletic’s Dennis Lin characterised the scenario barely in another way, reporting that the membership is “at the very least exploring” Stop’s commerce worth but additionally cautioning that San Diego “prefers” to maintain Stop within the fold and a commerce isn’t thought of seemingly at the moment.
The Padres have loads of wants this winter, together with assist in the outfield, beginning rotation, and behind the plate. Dealing Stop from a 2025 rotation the place he tasks to characteristic prominently alongside Yu Darvish and Michael King could be a considerable hit to an already skinny rotation combine, after all, even with with Matt Waldron, Randy Vasquez, Adrian Morejon, Bryan Hoeing, and Stephen Kolek as potential back-end choices accessible internally. It’s for that purpose Lin stories the membership would search “a number of controllable gamers,” together with “a number of” beginning pitchers. If San Diego have been unable to safe sufficient rotation assist from a Stop commerce, Lin provides, then they might seemingly look to flip these gamers to land different rotation items.
Given the membership’s rotation wants, it could elevate some eyebrows that the membership might contemplate buying and selling Stop even when they don’t obtain controllable pitching in return. The logic behind that chance, per Lin, stems partly from the membership’s pessimism concerning their means to maintain Stop in San Diego long-term. Whereas Lin notes the membership nonetheless “harbors some hope” that they are able to prolong King earlier than he reaches free company subsequent winter, they consider they don’t have any such probability of with the ability to afford Stop following the 2025 marketing campaign, when MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz tasks him to make $13.7MM in his ultimate journey by means of arbitration.
If Stop have been to be traded for younger expertise, that $13.7MM might be re-invested into the roster and doubtlessly used to a participant in free company, whether or not that be a mid-level starter like Jose Quintana or Kyle Gibson or assist in the outfield, even perhaps within the type of a reunion with Jurickson Profar. A lot as that wage reduction might be an enormous boon to the Padres, it’s not an particularly cumbersome determine general. For that purpose, Lin means that Stop might discover a a lot big selection of suitors on the commerce market this winter than Juan Soto did when San Diego shopped him final yr, whilst Stop isn’t almost as impactful because the league’s newly-minted $765MM man.
At the very least one suitor for Stop’s companies has already been named, as MLB Community’s Jon Morosi reported earlier at present that the Purple Sox are among the many groups with curiosity in Dylan Stop. Boston has lengthy been identified to be focusing on assist on the prime of their rotation, and after the membership fell quick within the pursuit of southpaw Max Fried at present their curiosity in figuring out a deal to accumulate Stop has absolutely solely grown. The Purple Sox at the moment appear centered on courting right-hander Corbin Burnes as they seek for top-of-the-rotation assist, however the opportunity of the membership trying so as to add two front-end starters this winter has been bandied about at occasions all through the offseason so even touchdown a participant of that caliber wouldn’t essentially preclude a deal from going down.
The Purple Sox have a tantalizing cachet of prime prospects of their system, although the likes of Roman Anthony and Kristian Campbell are typically thought of to be untouchable in commerce discussions. Catcher Kyle Teel, outfielder Wilyer Abreu, or even perhaps right-hander Garrett Whitlock could be good suits San Diego’s wants, although it’s unclear if the Purple Sox could be keen to half methods with any of these gamers in a deal for a rental piece like Stop. Whereas Abreu specifically has been floated steadily as a possible commerce candidate this winter, these rumors have usually tended to border Abreu because the headliner for a package deal that may land a controllable piece like White Sox lefty Garrett Crochet slightly than for a rental arm like Stop.