San Diego Padres: Colten Brewer Traded To Boston Red Sox

Let the offseason begin! The San Diego Padres have struck a deal with the Boston Red Sox.

Buckle up, ladies and gentlemen! The San Diego Padres need space on the 40-man roster to protect Rule-5 draft-eligible players and have a lot of worthy names to consider. To begin the clearing process, San Diego has made their first of what is expected to be numerous trades today, this one with the Boston Red Sox.

The Padres are shipping relief pitcher Colten Brewer to the Boston Red Sox for infielder Esteban Quiroz. Evan Drellich of NBCSBoston was first with the report. This move brings the Padres 40-man roster to 39.

Brewer was liked by many in the organization and could have been in consideration for an active-roster spot in 2019. Unfortunately, in his 11 games in 2018, Brewer finished with a 1-0 record and 5.59 ERA. He gave up 15 hits and seven walks in just 9.2 innings of work, striking out 10 in the process. It has been reported that the Boston Red Sox were in the market to upgrade their bullpen and Brewer could be an under-the-radar pickup for the World Series champions, if he can live up to his potential.

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As for the Padres, minor league infielder Esteban Quiroz will now make his way to San Diego after finishing up an impressive Arizona Fall League campaign. The 26-year-old left-handed hitting second baseman was signed out of Mexico by the Red Sox last year and played in 32 games for the Gulf Coast League Red Sox and AA Pawtucket Red Sox.

Quiroz logged a .283 average with seven home runs, five doubles, and 13 walks in 100 plate appearances between the two levels.

The reports on Quiroz out of Mexico match up with what evaluators have seen in the Arizona Fall League, including his ability to work the strike zone. In his last three years in Mexican professional ball, Quiroz produced a higher walk rate than strikeout rate and produced a .425 on-base percentage.

Based on initial reports and mutterings, this appears to be a very positive trade for AJ Preller and the San Diego Padres. With plenty of options to come out of the pen in 2019, the Padres now clear their first roster spot (hello, Chris Paddack) and acquire what looks to be a late-bloomer in Esteban Quiroz who adds the ability to reach base and find the bleachers. He may be only 5’7″ but Quiroz appears to have good pop in his bat and has the ability to play multiple positions in the infield.

Quiroz hit .267 with two home runs, three doubles, a triple, and a .452 OBP for the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League. He also recorded a 16/14 K/BB ratio.

Quiroz will likely begin the season in AA Amarillo, but don’t discount seeing his name in San Diego at some point in 2019, if he continues to showcase his ability to get on base and injuries take their toll at the major league level.