ESPN.com's Buster Olney says if the Padres deal Adrian Gonzalez, it will be during the winter. Here are the reasons why:
- The Padres have alienated their fans by letting Trevor Hoffman leave and trying to deal Jake Peavy in the midst of an ownership change. They don't want to risk disturbing their fan base any further.
- During their 1993 fire sale, they traded Fred McGriff and Gary Sheffield away, but kept Tony Gwynn. This year could be similar if the Padres trade Peavy after seeing Hoffman leave and they want to have a franchise player.
- The Red Sox would be interested if Gonzalez were available now, but Olney says more teams would bid during the offseason, when the Padres could get better players in return for their star.
