Adam Mazur's Padres' debut reveals why trading for Garrett Crochet makes no sense

Adam Mazur gave the San Diego Padres everything they could have asked for (and more) during his major league debut on Tuesday night. While Mazur's efforts didn't end with a Padres' W, it was through no fault of the San Diego right-hander who went six strong innings and allowed just one run.

Though Mazur did allow four free passes, he was able to work around those miscues and give his team a chance to take home the victory. Yuki Matsui's implosion in the seventh inning, coupled with eight runners left on base, was the reason for San Diego's demise at the hands of the Los Angeles Angels.

In conjunction with Mazur's MLB debut, Dennis Lin and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required) leaked the rumor that San Diego was interested in trading for Chicago White Sox starter Garrett Crochet. While no one should be shocked by the idea that Padres President of Baseball Operations AJ Preller is going big-game hunting this summer, Mazur's debut showed that expensive, star-caliber pitching may not be the Friars' top need at the MLB trade deadline.

Adam Mazur's Padres' debut reveals why trading for Garrett Crochet makes no sense

On the surface, it's hard to argue against the idea of bringing Crochet into the fold. Who wouldn't love to have an ace-level pitcher who sports a 3.49 ERA and 93 punchouts over 69.2 innings of work?

But the Padres would literally have to sell the farm in order to land Crochet in a trade this summer. The Friars already greatly depleted their minor leagues after trading for Dylan Cease and Luis Arráez earlier this year. How many more prospects is Preller willing to part with in order to upgrade the rotation?

In fact, a player like Mazur may well have to be included in a potential trade package for Crochet. The 23-year-old has already shown a penchant, albeit in the minor leagues, for keeping the ball in the ballpark and the bases clear of runners. With not even 150 innings pitched in the minor leagues during his first two professional seasons, one has to assume that Mazur will only improve in the coming years.

The Padres' price tag for Garrett Crochet would be enormous

The Padres also have the likes of Cease, Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish, and Michael King in the rotation, not to mention pitchers like Randy Vasquez, Jhony Brito, and several top arms down in the minors this season.

Injuries, more so than performance, have been the reason for the Padres' pitching woes this season. Moreover, the Padres bullpen might be a better place to start making trade deadline additions.

Adding an arm like Crochet is certainly intriguing, but at what cost? Padres fans have seen what players like MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, and James Wood are doing with the Washington Nationals. Those three players were sent to D.C. as part of the trade package for Juan Soto, and the Padres (after trading Soto to the New York Yankees) have nothing to show for it.

The big move isn't always the right move, but it's hard for Preller to keep his phone in his pocket during the month of July. The Padres have enough rotation depth that trading for a frontline starter like Crochet makes no sense.

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