Padres division-by-division trade targets: NL Central

Pirates

There is one obvious player for the Pirates that I’ve been wanting for a while, and that’s Starling Marte.

He’s a pretty hot name this offseason in terms of outfielders who could be available in a trade.

Marte is 31-years-old and is under team control for possibly two more seasons. He has an $11.5 million team option that was picked up for 2020, and he has a $12.5 million team option for 2021.

He hit .295 last year in 539 at-bats with 97 runs scored, 31 doubles, 23 home runs, 82 RBI, and 25 stolen bases.

Marte also had a .342 OBP and .845 OPS — the best OPS of his career.

I think he would be a great fit in the Padres outfield and is a player they should be all over if he’s available — and I don’t know why he wouldn’t be.

The Pirates also picked up the 2020 option on Chris Archer and he could be a trade target this offseason. He also has a team option worth $11 million for 2021.

Archer has not been great since coming over to the NL — again, a bit shocking.

And 2019 was a disaster for him as he posted a 5.19 ERA in 119.2 innings with a WHIP of 1.41. But he did have a K/9 of 10.8.

I could see the Padres taking a chance on him as a buy-low candidate who could be a solid middle of the rotation starter.

Those are the players from the NL Central who could be trade targets for the Padres this offseason. Which players interest you the most? Let us know in the comments below.