Grading this horrific hypothetical Baltimore Orioles-San Diego Padres trade

Sure, it's the time of year when hypothetical trade proposals are all over the place, but this one proposed by Steve Phillips of MLB Network between the Baltimore Orioles and San Diego Padres simply couldn't be ignored.

Grading a hypothetical Baltimore Orioles-San Diego Padres trade

Let's just say that Phillips seems to believe that the Padres will be sellers at the upcoming MLB trade deadline as he put together a blockbuster trade that would send Josh Hader, Blake Snell and Juan Soto all to Baltimore. The problem, however, is the return the Padres would be getting for three impact players.

Yes, Padres fans, you read that right. Arguably three of the best players on the Padres in exchange for a pitcher who has thrown 3.0 innings in MLB this season and three prospects.

The trade is so bad, it's actually laughable. It's also unrealistic as, even if the Padres were to trade off three of their biggest assets, they would likely get better returns by sending them to different teams than all in one package.

But let's stick with this trade proposal for just a moment. While prospects are great, a package like this would seem to require that some MLB players come back to San Diego in return. This would be a huge risk taken by A.J. Preller and a sign that the 2023 season has officially come to an end in terms of a postseason chase. With Friday's 7-1 home win over the Texas Rangers, there is absolutely no sign that Preller is selling ... yet.

From Baltimore's standpoint, the move would be part of a win-now strategy and would certainly take some of the prospects out of the farm system while protecting top overall prospect Jackson Holliday. Good for the Orioles, but horrible for the Padres.

This trade proposal gets a big F, even before we know for certain if the Padres will be buyers or sellers (or a mix of the two) as August 1 draws ever nearer.

What do you think? Would you do this trade? What kind of return would you want for three solid players like Hader, Snell and Soto? Let us know by connecting with us on Twitter here.