San Diego Padres: Pursuit Of Sonny Gray Coming To A Halt?

Are the San Diego Padres still working on a deal to acquire Sonny Gray?

Should the San Diego Padres pursue starting pitching help or roll with what they have as they continue to evaluate talent over the course of the 2019 season? It has become a hot debate topic among Padres fans as the offseason drags along, with quality points coming from both sides. Regardless, it appeared as if the Padres were major players for Sonny Gray before the winter meetings began. Are they still in the mix?

Recent reports suggest that not only are the Padres not a likely destination for Sonny Gray, but that the asking price remains insanely high for a pitcher the New York Yankees do not want or need. Currently, the Yankees feature a starting rotation of Luis Severino, C.C. Sabathia, Masahiro Tanaka, James Paxton, and J.A. Happ.

George A. King of the New York Post reported back in mid-December that the Yankees were looking for “high-end major league talent” for Gray who is 15-16 with a 4.51 ERA and 1.42 WHIP as a Yankee, including an increased walk rate.

New York has also been asking for elite prospect talent for Gray, including asking for Cincinnati Reds second-ranked prospect Taylor Trammell at the winter meetings. Trammell is the 17th-ranked prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline, and put together a fantastic season in High-A.

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More recent reports claim that the Milwaukee Brewers are now the top suitors for Gray, with the Reds still in the mix, but not likely to make a move with their recent starting pitching acquisitions of Alex Wood and Tanner Roark. Word is that the Yankees have asked for Milwaukee’s second-ranked prospect, outfielder Corey Ray. If that’s the case, is the price for Gray dropping? Ray may be #2 on the Brewers’ prospect ranking list, however, he is not in the top 100, per MLB Pipeline.

It’s hard to imagine that New York receives anything close to their demands for Gray, considering they have no leverage in trade negotiations. He has one year remaining on his contract and Brian Cashman couldn’t wait to speak openly about his desire to move Gray and ensure he isn’t wearing pinstripes in 2019.

As long as the asking price remains unreasonable, it’s better that the San Diego Padres aren’t being included in Gray rumors, however, should this drag on up until spring training, a discounted Sonny Gray would be an intriguing option, pending no high-profile pitching acquisitions by San Diego between now and then.

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