Could Padres Find Free Agent Diamonds in the Rough?

It is about time that A.J. Preller pay a little attention to his outfield at this point. Getting Jon Jay was great, but did you realize that right now your best center field option is probably Melvin Upton Jr. if you need to plug in Jay in left field? That’s essentially two center fielders. Great, well you also have youngsters Alex Dickerson, Jabari Blash, or Travis Jankowski to mix and match out there, but is there a better option?

More from Padres News

• Jurickson Profar free agency update likely rules out Padres reunion
• Fernando Tatis Jr. may not take to outfield move after Xander Bogaerts addition
• Padres News: Fernando Tatis Jr. trade rumors, Seth Lugo chase, Manny Machado
• Padres barely missed out on high-end veteran starting pitcher
• This veteran DH target seems ideal for contending Padres roster

So the big three outfielders of Yoenis Cespedes, Alex Gordon, and Justin Upton are all accounted for now, but might there be another good fit for this Padres team to patrol left field full or part time, leaving Melvin and Jay to round out the rest of the time in left and center field?

I think there is.

Anthony Castrovince points out 10 under the radar free agents and a few make sense for the Padres to take a look at. Number 1 on his list by the way is Mat Latos, who fans of this site were not a fan of the Padres looking at. Number 3 though might be worth a flier in Dominic Brown. Just in 2013 he was an NL All Star and seen ready to break out for the Phillies before two sub-par seasons that followed. However, he is still just 28 and does have some good major league experience under his belt. He could be a good left-handed bat off the bench at the least the way Will Venable has been in the past for the Padres.

If the Padres want to go for a more powerful route to complement the soft hitters like Jankowski and Jay, why not take a chance on Marlon Byrd? He actually had a pretty good season for the Reds and Giants at 37, blasting 23 home runs. Sure his BA was under .250 and OBP under .300, but remember we are comparing him at this point to Melvin Upton Jr.(.259/.327) and Travis Jankowski (.211/.245 with the Padres) so the bar isn’t extremely high.

More from Friars on Base

• Jurickson Profar free agency update likely rules out Padres reunion
• Fernando Tatis Jr. may not take to outfield move after Xander Bogaerts addition
• Padres News: Fernando Tatis Jr. trade rumors, Seth Lugo chase, Manny Machado
• Padres barely missed out on high-end veteran starting pitcher
• This veteran DH target seems ideal for contending Padres roster

With both of these players there would be no false illusions that either one is part of a long term plan for the Padres. If they sign Brown to a one or even two year deal in a best case he resurrects his career and they might be able to trade him for more good building blocks. For Byrd if he is performing he too could be dealt at the deadline again for a team that is looking for power late in the season.

A.J. Preller has certainly shown a propensity to think outside of the box when making personnel decisions, here are two options he might take a look at and help the Padres be more competitive in 2016 and beyond.