Mets Could Make League-Altering Trade for $108M Padres Starter Before Trade Deadline
The New York Mets will be without Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas to start the season. Although both are expected to return, the Mets may still want to strengthen their starting rotation.
CBS Sports’ Mike Axisa named San Diego Padres starter Dylan Cease as an early candidate to be traded before the trade deadline. He also named the Mets as a potential suitor. “Just about every Padre who is making real money and doesn’t have a no-trade clause has been mentioned in trade rumors the last few months, including Cease,” wrote Axisa.
“Normally I would say San Diego will have to fall out of the race for a trade to become a real possibility, though I’m not sure that’s the case here. Money is obviously tight — you only need to look at how Michael King’s and Nick Pivetta’s contracts are structured to see that — and Cease will make a healthy $13.75 million in 2025, his final year of team control. Is there an avenue for the Padres to trade Cease for multiple younger and cheaper players? Yes.” Even with Manaea and Montas healthy, the Mets starting rotation is nowhere near as strong as the one belonging to their biggest threat in the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Cease is a Cy Young Award caliber pitcher, finishing top five in voting twice in his career. Last season he finished fourth in the NL Cy Young Award voting with a 3.47 ERA and 224 strikeouts.
Cease has made 30-plus starts in each of the last four seasons and would instantly be the best pitcher on the Mets staff. He has a 3.40 ERA over the last four seasons and finished as the American League Cy Young Award runner-up in 2022.
He will be a free agent after the season and the Padres may look to stretch their time with him as long as they can, but, whether it’s now or in the summer, Cease will demand a decent package to acquire.
MLB Insider: The Padres should consider signing this former All-Star
Entering the offseason, the San Diego Padres’ catcher situation was heavily discussed, and rightfully so.
The only catcher under contract was former top prospect Luis Campusano, who has struggled mightily in limited Major-League action. Ultimately, the team re-signed former All-Star catcher Elias Diaz to a one-year contract while Brett Sullivan, who is capable of playing all over the diamond, loomed as another option.
But Diaz struggled mightily this spring, hitting .160 in 25 at-bats. He’s also coming off a down season in 2024 where he hit .265 with six home runs and 38 RBI in 325 ABs. Which begs the question: Should the Padres be done addressing the catcher role?
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Padres should consider Yasmani Grandal as catcher addition
With Yasmani Grandal looming on the free-agent market, the Padres should seriously consider a reunion with their former catcher. Grandal, 36, debuted with the Padres in 2012 and played three seasons in San Diego before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2015.
