San Diego Padres Need To Hold On To Brad Hand

The San Diego Padres have a young core of players starting to develop at the major league level and a number of elite prospects peeking through the Petco Park gates. Is the rebuilding process close to being over? Should they keep their All-Star closer to continue holding down the bullpen?

The San Diego Padres still find themselves “in it” in the month of June. They hold a 7-3 record in their last 10 games, and a win on Wednesday against the Cardinals would grant them their fifth-straight series victory. This is certainly a good sign for a ball club that is looking to end the rebuilding process and return to competing at a high level.

Although they are only six games out of first place in the NL West, nearly every major outlet continues to believe that the Padres will be sellers at the trade deadline. Brad Hand, Craig Stammen, and Kirby Yates are names that are almost a lock to be traded, but should they be?

Despite riding the rebuild path, the Padres have shown that they are capable of playing solid baseball, even without core players like Wil Myers, Austin Hedges, Dinelson Lamet, and Franchy Cordero. The Padres are currently five games under .500 and it’s fair to say that they could very well be over .500 if these players hadn’t gotten injured.

This season has hinted that 2018 could perhaps be the last year of the Padres rebuilding phase. The 2019 season may feature top prospects Luis Urias and Fernando Tatis Jr. up the middle on Opening Day, along with multiple talented pitching prospects filling out the starting rotation. Next season could be the first year the Padres have their full core players looking to make a run.

What if the San Diego Padres hold on to their talent at the trade deadline?

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This brings us back to the question, should bullpen pieces like Hand, Stammen, and Yates be traded at the deadline? If the Padres are truly trying to compete in 2019, then they shouldn’t be traded. This season has proved that the Padres are only a few MLB-caliber players away from competing. Mid-level minor league prospects won’t help them climb over the hump.

Brad Hand is, realistically, the only player the Padres would be able to get a large return on. Stammen and Yates would at best, only net the Padres mid-level prospects. The Padres may be better off continuing to use their services.

In a recent story by MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell, Brad Hand had this to say about staying in San Diego,

"“When I signed the contract, that was the big part of it,” Hand said. “I wanted to be here, I wanted to help the young guys come up, and I wanted to win a World Series here.”"

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Unless teams are willing to offer the Padres players that are ready to contribute at the major league level now, or at the very latest in 2019, then they should hold on to their very valuable bullpen pieces.