How Padres could obliterate Rangers' proposed Dylan Cease trade package

The Dylan Cease trade rumors are back. The Texas Rangers and New York Yankees are said to be leading the conversation, but don't count out the San Diego Padres.

In fact, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required) mentioned the Padres by name. According to Rosenthal, White Sox scouts have “descended in droves” upon Rangers camp this week. But the Rangers have also sent a contingent from the front office to Peoria in order to scout the Friars as well. Jon Morosi of MLB Network has also suggested the Padres as a possible suitor.

The old saying goes something along the lines of, "Everything is bigger in Texas." But the Rangers' reported trade proposal is incredibly light, and if the Padres want Cease, they could easily outbid the defending World Series champions for the Chicago White Sox starter.

How Padres could obliterate Rangers' proposed Dylan Cease trade package

That same report from Rosenthal suggests that the Rangers are floating a trade package of utility man Ezequiel Durán and two pitching prospects (Brock Porter and Jack Leiter). Though Leiter has the name recognition and former first-round status, Porter is arguably the better pitcher at this stage of the game.

Duran is a fine player, but if a 24-year-old bench bat who can play multiple positions and two pitching prospects is all the White Sox are seeking in a trade, A.J. Preller better be giving Chris Getz a call. The Padres could crush that proposal and still maintain their top three prospects.

It's obvious that Jackson Merrill and Ethan Salas would be untouchable, but if the White Sox were seeking a package centered around one of Dylan Lesko or Robby Snelling, that's a deal that Preller should be eager to pull the trigger on.

The Padres' farm system is extremely deep and San Diego has several prospects who are blocked at the major league level by players with untradeable contracts. Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts aren't going anywhere, so any number of young infield prospects could be part of a package for Cease.

Joe Musgrove hasn't shown much this spring, and Yu Darvish isn't getting any younger. Having Cease paired with Michael King in the starting rotation, along with a combination of Jhony Brito or Randy Vásquez, turns San Diego's rotation into one of better starting units in the National League.

Don't sleep on Preller's ability to obliterate the Rangers' supposed offer and secure Cease heading into the 2024 season. Remember, Cease is not a rental and is under team control for two more seasons.

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