The San Diego Padres’ offseason has been utterly terrible. They went into the offseason on a high note after pushing the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers to the brink of elimination in the National League Divisional Series. Since then, they’ve lost almost all of their momentum in a silent winter. Not only did the Padres wait until Jan. 24 to make their first major league acquisition – right-handed pitcher Ron Marinaccio in a trade with the Chicago White Sox – but the Friars have yet to make a big league signing, despite reports on Tuesday that the team has agreed to a one-year contract with catcher Elias Diaz. Diaz, who closed the 2024 season with the Padres, would return for $3.5 million and would be San Diego’s first official major league deal of the offseason.
While the Padres have been relatively quiet in free agency, they have had to wave goodbye to several significant free agents, including All-Star outfielder Jurickson Profar, who inked a three-year, $42 million contract with the Atlanta Braves. Furthermore, All-Star reliever Tanner Scott agreed to a four-year, $72 million contract with the rival Dodgers, and the Dodgers signed Japanese sensation Roki Sasaki despite a more pricey offer from San Diego. More news: Dodgers could trade $15 million All-Star in potential blockbuster move. While all of this has been going on, the widow of Padres late owner Peter Seidler has launched a lawsuit seeking control of the team over her brothers-in-law. That has added another layer to San Diego’s already tough offseason. Now, the Padres may be the fourth-best team in their division, and they must make some changes to reestablish themselves as an NL powerhouse.
Harold Reynolds of MLB Network has just the thing. On Tuesday, Reynolds pushed the Padres to sell one of their finest players, a move that would send shockwaves throughout the MLB. “Manny (Machado), you cannot move that contract. “We’re not moving (Xander) Bogaerts’ contract,” Reynolds added. “There’s one player that can change the whole direction of this organization and that’s (Fernando) Tatis, and I’m putting him on the market to trade.” Tatis, who signed a 14-year, $340 million contract with the Padres that would last until the 2034 season, is still only 26 years old.
The two-time All-Star and 2023 Platinum Glove Award winner appeared to be the league’s next face in 2021, hitting.282/.364/.611 with 42 home runs, 97 runs batted in, and an OPS of.975 in 130 games. Tatis then had a tumultuous 2022 season, which included a motorcycle accident and a suspension for using performance-enhancing substances. He missed the entire 2022 season and the first 20 games of 2023
. Tatis has been a standout performer over the last two seasons, finishing with an OPS of.770 in 2023 and.833 in 2024. However, he is due a lot of money over the next decade, and on a squad with a lot of great players, Reynolds believes Tatis makes the most sense as a potential trade piece. “You know how many teams are gonna hop in at that number, at that young player to go get him,” Reynolds claimed. “And now I keep my pitching, I’ll get back something for Tatis, and we will keep this thing rolling.
” The Padres have called up standout pitchers Dylan Cease and Michael King, who are both in their final year of team control. However, Reynolds pushed San Diego to keep their pitching, which was the primary reason they were able to make a run last season, and use the money saved by moving Tatis to strengthen the rest of their roster.
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