The San Diego Padres are reportedly entertaining trade offers for ace Dylan Cease, but a deal before the season starts seems unlikely. Instead, they may look to move him closer to the trade deadline if they fall out of contention. While the Padres have a talented roster, the National League features several strong teams that could be ahead of them in the standings by midseason.
Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report recently predicted that San Diego could trade Cease to the Atlanta Braves in a blockbuster deal.
“It’s plenty plausible for five months from now, though, if the quintet of Arizona, Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia is as good as it ought to be, putting San Diego in a spot where getting something in exchange for the players likely to leave in November is a better option than just going down with the ship,” Miller wrote.
San Diego’s GM A.J. Preller and Atlanta’s Alex Anthopoulos have only made one trade since Anthopoulos took over in 2017, but a deal for Cease would make sense for both sides. The Padres could land one of the Braves’ top pitching prospects, along with additional assets to strengthen their farm system.
Financially, San Diego may struggle to retain Cease beyond this season. Spotrac projects him to sign for $108 million in free agency, but his actual price tag could be even higher.
For Atlanta, acquiring Cease—alongside the eventual return of Spencer Strider from the IL—would give them one of the most dominant starting rotations in baseball, potentially positioning them for another World Series run.