Padres reportedly add to infield logjam with Friday night Luis Arraez trade

Normally, we don't see trades in the month of May. It is the point of the season where a team's needs may be defined, but every team is technically still in the hunt for a playoff spot and they are hesitant to move guys until they know for certain they are going to be sellers. Don't tell AJ Preller and the San Diego Padres that, though, because they just threw that conventional wisdom out the window.

On Friday evening, the Padres somehow pulled off a trade not only for an everyday player, but a really good one, as they acquired Luiz Arraez from the Marlins for a package of players that...is certainly a group of baseball players.

Padres News: San Diego pulls off shocking trade for Luis Arraez

First, everyone make sure to take a moment and laugh at the Marlins. They were actually an interesting team last season at 84-78 with an exciting young core of pitchers and Arraez, who is among the best contact hitters in all of baseball, leading the way. Then they drove off the GM that helped build that team, all of their pitchers got hurt, and they are apparently entering yet another fire sale period, as we got rumors that Arraez could be available going back to this past offseason -- even before the disaster began. It is embarrassing to see a club run this way, but here we are.

As for the Padres, this is an interesting move. They already don't have a shortage of infielders whatsoever on their roster, but Arraez may have been a case where the talent available at a price they were comfortable with was too good to pass on. With Ha-Seong Kim set to be a free agent and Arraez having some team control left, this is also a nod to the future.

Ultimately, the price the Padres paid is what matters. Arraez is making real money this year at $10.6 million, which is probably the real motivation for Miami to trade him, since they prefer the "league minimum aisle" when it comes to their payroll. San Diego apparently was more than willing to give up on one of their newest relievers in Woo-Suk Go very quickly, and while the rest of the prospects going to Miami are interesting, especially Dillon Head, these aren't exactly the guys you would expect to have to give up to land a two-time reigning batting champ.

At this point, the Padres may have to play Xander Bogaerts at catcher (we're joking, kind of) to make room for Arraez, and this is another Preller move where he is prioritizing talent over position. However, there could be things happening in the background that could make room on the roster and, if not, making the lineups is Mike Shildt's problem.

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