Projecting the Padres' bullpen after big moves at 2024 trade deadline

The San Diego Padres may have lost Enyel De Los Santos from their bullpen at the MLB trade deadline, but the Friars more than made up for that after adding two of the most sought-after relievers available.

AJ Preller swung for the fences once again at this year's trade deadline, and while the Padres President of Baseball Operations was unable to lure Garrett Crochet from the South Side of Chicago, San Diego did pick up both Tanner Scott and Jason Adam.

The Padres already had one of the best closers in the game, but adding two top-of-the-line arms like Scott and Adam will help manager Mike Shildt to shorten the game and give the Friars' skipper an opportunity to provide extra rest to Robert Suarez. So how is the Padres' bullpen shaping up for the final two months of the 2024 season?

Projecting the Padres' bullpen after big moves at 2024 trade deadline

Suarez is surely keeping his role as the closer, but as mentioned previously, don't be surprised if Shildt will now limit the number of times he allows Suarez to go on back-to-back days, or at the very least three days in row, because Scott and Adam are capable of handling high-leverage situations.

That leaves five more spots for the Padres to fill out, and Stephen Kolek is all but assured to have one of them. A Rule 5 Draft pick from the Seattle Mariners, the Padres need to keep Kolek on the active roster all season in order to retain his services.

The Padres will likely keep Bryan Hoeing, who was brought over in the trade for Scott, as part of the active roster as well. Hoening has minor league options remaining, but also owns a 2.70 ERA. It's tough to see the Padres sending him down to Triple-A El Paso.

Jeremiah Estrada can now be worked into lower-leverage situations with Scott and Adam covering the seventh and eighth innings. The last two players on the list are left-handers. Yuki Matsui and Adrian Morejon are all but guaranteed to be part of the Friars bullpen moving forward.

Austin Davis is out of minor league options, and hasn't pitched great since being called up a month ago. San Diego may want to allow things to play out a little longer before DFA'ing the southpaw, but the bullpen is getting rather crowded which may be his undoing.

No matter how things ultimately unfold, the Padres bullpen is now a force to be reckoned with after the additions of Scott and Adam.

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