Padres urged to consider trading away their top prospect this offseason

Jared Bloom

•
Padres urged to consider trading away their top prospect this offseason image

The San Diego Padres are in the midst of an important offseason. They have already lost their ace, Dylan Cease, after he signed a free agent deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. 

Michael King, another frontline starter for San Diego, is also on the open market, along with Robert Suarez. The club will also be without Yu Darvish during the 2026 season after undergoing elbow surgery.

Acquiring pitchers will be one of the team's highest priorities over the next few months. However, they have also been rumored to turn one of their relievers, like Mason Miller, into a starting pitcher. 

Padres urged to consider trading away their top prospect this offseason 

While much of the attention is on free agency, the Padres could add players via the trade route. There have been multiple stars that have been dangled as trade chips so far this winter. 

For San Diego, they could look at parting ways with one of their top prospects in order to get some help in 2026. Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter believes No. 1 prospect Ethan Salas is one to watch here. 

"A.J. Preller has never hesitated to trade his prospects, and flipping Salas this winter might be the best way to maximize his rapidly slipping value. That could be a decision that comes back to haunt the Padres if everything clicks, but it feels like that's the crossroads we've arrived at, despite the fact that he is still a teenager."

Reuter points out that San Diego's GM has never thought twice about trading prospects for MLB-ready talent. Salas could bring in a quality starting pitcher. 

The Milwaukee Brewers have been rumored to part ways with Freddy Peralta, or San Diego could hit up the Miami Marlins and see what it would take for someone like Edward Cabrera to be dealt.

More MLB news:

Senior Editor