2 reasons to believe Padres should be buyers, 2 reasons they should be sellers

Entering May 30, the San Diego Padres are 31-23. That record is good enough for second place in the NL West standings currently, but a recent slide of eight losses over their prior 12 games does not make Friars fans all too comfortable.

So what does this mean for the Padres this season? Are they going to be buyers at the deadline to add some important pieces to a crumbling roster? Or, will they turn the page on the 2025 season, and build up for the future? The verdict is still out, but the next month will be crucial for this organization.

2 reasons the Padres should be buyers

The core talent is very strong

It's obvious that the Padres' best players are also among the cream of the crop leaguewide. Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Jackson Merrill, and Jake Cronenworth make up a durable core that is not only talented, but reliable and clutch. This group can undoubtedly carry the Padres to the promised land, and just a little tune-up in the rest of the lineup could really make this offense unstoppable.

Gavin Sheets' addition to the team has been the most pivotal move this year, so who knows? Maybe San Diego can strike gold twice.

On the precipice of breaking through

Since 2020, the Padres have made the postseason three times. They got bounced by the Dodgers in the divisional series in both 2020 and 2024 (Friars took Los Angeles to an elimination game last season).

And then of course in 2022, San Diego flexed their way to the NLCS. This club has been on the brink of a special postseason run for quite a few years, and maybe they are one or two moves away from breaking through.

2 reasons the Padres should be sellers

As a disclaimer, this is no way saying that Padres should give up on the 2025 season. However, if the Friars play the same way over the next three weeks as they have recently (losing series to Yankees, Mariners, Blue Jays this month), maybe it's important to really consider where this team is headed.

Starting rotation isn't good enough

After Dylan Cease, Michael King, and Nick Pivetta, there a ton of question marks in the starting rotation. Will Yu Darvish every be fully healthy again? And if he returns, what version of himself will Padres fans get from him?

But it doesn't end there. San Diego will have to rely on some sort of mix of Randy Vasquez, Kyle Hart, Matt Waldron, and Stephen Kolek to get the job done. Is that really enough for the Padres to win in a seven-game series? They would have to rely on the front three arms to pitch on short rest, which is a lot of pressure to do for the entirety of a postseason.

Next year could really be the year

Let's take a step back and look at how next year could be for the Padres. The core group remains, and they could extend one of Cease or King. That's a great starting point, and if they trade someone like Luis Arraez or Robert Suarez this season, you'd like to think they'd receive someone who will play next year, whether that is a top prospect ready for MLB, or an every day player.

Making a move like this, on top of the loaded free agent class this upcoming offseason, San Diego will be a desired destination for several top-end players. They could flush out players this year who were never going to come back in 2026, leading to the club building a strong foundation to a promising year.