San Diego Padres trade targets from the AL Central

White Sox

As I said previously, the White Sox are ready to turn the corner on their rebuild and want to compete in 2020 — much like the Padres.

Last year the Padres and White Sox battled over Machado to try and accelerate their respective rebuilds, and as we know, San Diego won that battle.

There don’t seem to be many fits in a trade from the White Sox either as they have a lot of young talent on their roster that they’re not likely to part with.

They could use some help in the outfield, although they have some outfield prospects on the verge of breaking through.

Still, maybe they’d like a Hunter Renfroe to ease the transition to some of their outfield prospects.

I picture Carlos Rodon above because there is a slight chance they move on from him — probably not this offseason though as he is working his way back from Tommy John.

But Rodon is only under team control for two more seasons, and again, he’ll likely miss most of the 2020 season as well.

When healthy he is a top of the rotation arm. But trading him still seems unlikely, and the Padres trading for him seems even more unlikely.

Depending on how the 2020 season goes for the White Sox, Rodon might be a name to keep an eye on next offseason.

As for this offseason, I don’t see a trade working with the White Sox unless they want an outfielder for some prospects.

Indians

A lot of you who clicked on this article likely did so for this very reason, to see my thoughts on trading for Corey Kluber.

The two-time Cy Young winner is assumed to be on the trading block this offseason and several teams will be calling the Indians to check in … and the Padres should be one of those teams.

Kluber, a 33-year-old righty, only made 7 starts in 2019 because of injury and posted a miserable 5.80 ERA in those starts.

But just going back to 2018 he was an All-Star with a 2.89 ERA and 20 wins in 33 starts with 222 strikeouts in 215 innings.

Maybe he is starting to decline, but it’s hard to believe he can’t still be a top of the rotation pitcher.

The Indians picked up his $17.5 million option for 2020, and Kluber has an $18 million team option for 2021 with a $1 million buyout.

That’s not a terrible deal for a former Cy Young winner.

Plus, it would be neat for him to end his career where it all started. The Padres drafted him in the fourth round of the 2007 MLB Draft before trading him to the Indians for … Ryan Ludwick.

Let’s try not to think about that much more.

Kluber is really the only trade target on the Indians, but he’s a big one, and one the Padres should certainly pursue.

Tigers

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Matthew Boyd has been rumored in trades for a couple of years now, and perhaps this is the offseason he gets moved.

Personally, I’ve never been very high on Boyd, but he did have a 3.5 WAR season in 2019 according to Baseball Reference.

This past season he posted a 4.56 ERA in 185.1 innings with 238 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.23.

I think he could be a fine middle of the rotation pitcher for the Padres, but he’s not worth the prospect haul that the Tigers apparently want for him.

You may have seen in our Faux Winter Meetings that I was able to trade Wil Myers to the Tigers along with some prospects and money for a couple of mid-level prospects.

The Tigers are certainly in a position in their rebuild to take on Myers’ contract along with a couple of prospects.

And they could use some help in the outfield anyway, and while Myers has his issues, he would likely bat third or fourth in their lineup.

Outside of Boyd, though, there really isn’t a fit with the Tigers.

I certainly hope A.J. Preller reads my articles and sees if Detroit is willing to take on Myers’ contract for real as that would be huge.

Royals

More from Friars on Base

• Padres barely missed out on high-end veteran starting pitcher
• This veteran DH target seems ideal for contending Padres roster
• Padres got steal with Xander Bogaerts after Carlos Correa’s mega-deal
• Failed Padres top prospect makes stunning return with minor league deal
• Padres fail to land ideal Xander Bogaerts teammate at catcher

I feel the need to start off this section by defending Luis Urias because I do love him and think he can be a good Major League player.

Having said that, if there is a chance that the Padres can get Whit Merrifield from the Royals they have to take it — even if that means giving up Urias in the deal.

Of course, it’s not like Merrifield has to replace Urias at second, the Royals utility player has plenty of experience in the outfield as well. But his natural position is second base.

Either way, I love Merrifield and would love to see the Padres go after him.

This past season he hit .302 with 105 runs scored, 41 doubles, 10 triples, 16 home runs, 74 RBI, 20 stolen bases, a .348 OBP, and .811 OPS.

Yeah, I’ll take that type of production.

And it’s not like 2019 was a fluke season, he’s been putting up similar numbers for three straight seasons now.

The soon-to-be 31-year-old is under team control for at least three more seasons for a total of $14.5 million. And he has a team option for 2023 of $10.5 million.

I don’t know for sure that the Royals are looking to move him, but if they are, I hope the Padres are first in line.

If the Royals can’t work out a contract extension with Jorge Soler this offseason then he could be another trade target as well.

There aren’t many trade targets for the Padres from the AL Central, but there are some big names to consider. Let us know in the comments who intrigues you the most.