The Padres are once again grabbing deadline headlines, as they’ve swung a trade that’ll bring star closer Mason Miller and lefty JP Sears to San Diego while sending a four-player package led by top shortstop prospect Leo De Vries back to the Athletics. The A’s will also add right-handers Braden Nett, Henry Baez and Eduarniel Nunez in the blockbuster deal. The deal is now official.
It’ll go down as one of the more stunning trades of the 2025 deadline. Miller is one of the sport’s most highly regarded relievers — an All-Star and fourth-place finisher in American League Rookie of the Year voting just last season. He’s controlled for another four years beyond the current season. De Vries, meanwhile, currently sits as the No. 5 prospect in the entire sport on Baseball America’s latest rankings.
It also sets the stage for a fair bit of other dealing from the Padres, who’ve been discussing current closer Robert Suarez and righty Dylan Cease in trade talks. Either or both could change hands now in trades that simultaneously net younger talent and free up payroll space for San Diego to pursue upgrades in left field, behind the plate and/or on the bench. Both Miller and Sears are still in their pre-arbitration years and thus earning just over the league minimum. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale suggests that there are no current plans to trade Suarez, though with president of baseball operations A.J. Preller at the helm for the Padres, nothing should ever be expressly ruled out. ESPN’s Buster Olney reports that both Suarez and Cease are still being discussed.
The addition of Miller strengthens what was already a powerhouse San Diego bullpen (though, as mentioned, could set the stage for a Suarez trade as well). San Diego relievers have pitched to an MLB-best 2.97 earned run average on the season and rank fifth with a collective 24.1% strikeout rate.
Miller, despite carrying a fairly pedestrian 3.76 ERA, will provide a massive upgrade. The majority of his trouble this year came in a rough month from early May to early June. He’s rattled off 14 innings of one-run ball with 18 strikeouts and four walks since June 15 and, of course, was one of the most dominant bullpen arms in the game a year ago. Miller has pitched 136 2/3 big league innings and carries a 3.16 ERA with a superlative 37.3% strikeout rate and 10.2% walk rate. He’s saved 48 games and tallied one hold in his career to date and has blown only six opportunities.
Certainly, the tools are there for Miller’s bottom-line results to align with the very best arms in the sport. No one in baseball throws harder than his average 101.1 mph four-seamer, and Miller’s 20.4% swinging-strike rate trails only Josh Hader and Fernando Cruz for the top mark among pitchers with even 10 innings pitched this season. Dating back to 2024, he’s fanned nearly 41% of his opponents and kept his walk rate under 10%. Even in an era where power arsenals with premium bat-missing ability seem to proliferate the sport, the 6’5″ Miller stands above the rest in a tier nearly unto himself.
It’s worth at least considering the possibility that Miller could return to the rotation at some point down the road. Ken Rosenthal and Dennis Lin of The Athletic suggested last night that it was an idea the Padres had considered. Miller was drafted as a starter and made his big league debut in the Athletics’ rotation. Given the Friars’ lack of rotation depth and plethora of talented relievers, they could at least explore the idea of returning Miller to a starting role beginning next season, though there’s obviously some risk in removing him from a role in which he’s found such success.
Regardless of which role Miller holds in the long run, it seems likely he’ll work in relief for the balance of the current season. He’s not yet arbitration-eligible — though he will be this winter — and is controlled for four additional seasons, so it’s only natural that the asking price on the right-hander was exorbitant. The Padres have repeatedly rebuffed teams who’ve come calling for De Vries or top catching prospect Ethan Salas, but San Diego ultimately relented in order to acquire four-plus seasons of arguably the game’s most dominant reliever and Sears — a respectable back-of-the-rotation arm who can help solidify the staff for three-plus years in his own right.
Sears, 29, came to the A’s alongside Ken Waldichuk and Luis Medina in the trade sending Frankie Montas and Lou Trivino to the Yankees. He’s the only one of the pitchers (on either side of the deal) that has held up without a major injury.
While Sears is a pure back-end starter, he’s been a durable source of competitive innings for the A’s. The 5’11” southpaw started 32 games in both 2023 and 2024, and he’s taken the mound 22 times in 2025. This year’s 4.95 ERA is a career-high, though like teammate Luis Severino, more of those struggles have come at home in what’s proving to be a hitter-friendly setting at West Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park. Sears has a 5.48 ERA and has allowed 14 homers in 47 2/3 innings at home, compared to a 4.55 mark and nine round-trippers in 63 1/3 innings on the road.
Over Sears’ past 464 innings with the A’s, the lefty has worked to a combined 4.58 ERA. He’s fanned 20.1% of his opponents in that time and kept his walk rate to a strong 6.7%. Sears sits 92.2 mph on his four-seamer and couples that pitch with a slider that sits 79.5 mph and a changeup that’s averaging 83.4 mph this year. He’s averaging just over five innings per start.
Sears now slots into a rotation group that includes Cease (for now), Nick Pivetta, Yu Darvish, Ryan Bergert and Randy Vasquez. Top starter Michael King has been out for more than two months but is expected to return before season’s end. Both Cease and King are free agents at season’s end.
San Diego has been hopeful of re-signing King, though that’s no guarantee. Next year, they’ll get Joe Musgrove back from Tommy John surgery. A 2026 rotation could well include Musgrove, Pivetta, Darvish, Sears and one of Bergert/Vasquez/Stephen Kolek, though the return of King or acquisition of other rotation arms obviously can’t be ruled out. Regardless, Sears adds some nice depth and will remain affordable. He also still has a pair of minor league option years remaining, giving the Friars plenty of flexibility with the composition of that staff.
The A’s have been reluctant to move Miller, but San Diego’s willingness to include De Vries surely pushed things over the edge. He’s the best prospect moved at a trade deadline since the Padres gutted their farm system to acquire Juan Soto three years ago. Today’s front offices are generally loath to part with prospects who’ve reached this level of acclaim, but the Preller-led Padres are the most aggressive in baseball when it comes to the trade market.
Still just 18 years old, De Vries is a switch-hitting shortstop with power who’s having success in High-A despite his youth. More advanced and experienced opponents haven’t fazed him. He’s hitting .245/.357/.410 (116 wRC+) with eight homers and eight steals despite being one of the youngest players in the league. He draws above-average grades across the board in most scouting reports, with his raw power, in particular, generating plus marks.
De Vries is listed at 6’2″ and 183 pounds, although given his age, he could still grow into more bulk and tap more into his raw power. Baseball America describes him as a potential “centerpiece of a big league club,” touting an all-fields approach from the left side of the plate and a pull-heavy approach from the right side that lets him get to that power more frequently. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen is a bit more bearish, albeit only relative to his elite ranking at BA and at MLB.com (where he’s ranked third in the game). Citing questions about his defensive aptitude and some swing-and-miss, FanGraphs’ report calls De Vries “only” a top-40 or so prospect in the game and has him as more of a strong regular than a superstar.
As with any prospect, there’s a fairly broad range of outcomes, but De Vries’ ceiling is higher than most and he’s on track to reach the majors at an uncommonly young age, giving the A’s more control over his peak physical seasons. A call to the majors in 2027 seems quite feasible, and in a best-case scenario he could even debut late next year. If De Vries incurs injuries or takes a bit longer to adjust to upper-level pitching, that debut could push back to 2028, but even then he’d be in just his age-21 season. Regardless, when the range of likely outcomes is generally agreed upon as something between “above-average everyday shortstop” to “superstar centerpiece of a team,” we’re talking about one of the game’s premier young talents.
De Vries is the clear headliner of the deal, but the three arms headed back to the A’s are hardly mere throw-ins. Nett and Baez were reportedly among the more sought-after prospects in the second tier of a thin Padres farm system. Both are posting strong numbers in Double-A this season.
Nett, 23, has started 17 games and pitched 74 1/3 innings. He’s logged a 3.39 ERA, 26.3% strikeout rate, 10.4% walk rate and 42.3% ground-ball rate. Nett signed with the Padres as an undrafted free agent in 2022 and has pitched his way into genuine prospect status.
Baseball America ranked Nett seventh among San Diego prospects earlier this month. He sits third in their system at MLB.com and 12th at FanGraphs. He sits 95-97 mph with a fastball that can climb to 99 mph. Nett’s slider gets above-average grades from scouts and works with a cutter, changeup and curveball that could all use some additional refinement. He’ll be Rule 5 eligible this offseason and will surely be selected to the A’s 40-man roster by November — if he’s not called upon for a major league look in the season’s final two months.
Baez, meanwhile, ranked 16th in the system at BA, 13th at MLB.com and 27th at FanGraphs. He’s posted a 1.96 ERA in 20 Double-A starts this season but has averaged under five innings per outing. Baez sits in the low to mid-90s with his fastball and tops out around 97. He has better command than Nett but lesser velocity and misses fewer bats. He also features a curveball in the upper 70s and a mid-80s changeup. Baez was already on San Diego’s 40-man roster and will thus go right onto the Athletics’ 40-man roster as well.
The 26-year-old Nunez has already made his major league debut, tossing 4 2/3 innings out of the Padres’ bullpen this year. He’s a pure bullpen prospect who can step right into manager Mark Kotsay’s relief corps, if the A’s choose. He’s sat 97.9 mph with his four-seamer in his brief big league look, and Nunez has sat even higher (98.8 mph) in Triple-A. He couples that pitch with an upper-80s slider and a seldom-used curveball in the low to mid-80s.
San Diego signed Nunez as a minor league free agent over the winter, and he’s made huge gains with what had been previously poor command in the Cubs’ system. Nunez walked 22% of his opponents with Chicago’s Triple-A club a year ago. His 14% mark in Triple-A this season is still problematic but nowhere near as alarming. He also boasts a massive 38.6% chase rate in the minors and an outrageous 21.5% swinging-strike rate.
If Nunez can even come close to replicating those rates in the majors, he’d have the potential to be a high-end relief arm himself. That said, it’s worth bearing in mind that Nunez is already older than the elite reliever for whom he was just traded (Miller), and this is first time he’s really shown any semblance of command in the upper minors. There’s upside here, but Nunez is still very much a work in progress.
There’s rarely a dull deadline when it comes to Preller, and this morning’s early and still fairly stunning swap of one of MLB’s most coveted prospects for one of its best big league relievers leaves plenty of time for further dealing. The Padres have been connected to left fielders like Cleveland’s Steven Kwan and Boston’s Jarren Duran while simultaneously exploring deals involving Cease, Suarez and other members of the current big league roster. More fireworks are surely on the way, but Preller and his Oakland West Sacramento counterpart, David Forst, have kicked things off with a bang.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported the trade of Miller and Sears to the Padres and was also first with the full details on the Athletics’ return. This post was originally published at 10:25am.
Whoa.
Definitely the winners of the trading deadline! Congratulations Friars!
No they aren’t. They gave up the #3 prospect in baseball.
Prellers gotta get fired but it’s long overdue. Bender for peanuts or Miller for de vires plus. He’s a buffoon.
Profar was a #1. Sometimes they don’t work out
And got one of the best young closers–pitchers, period–in baseball and a pretty solid SP.
@Mets- Are you kidding me right now? Go back to sleep!
Are you serious? They gave up a 18 year old future superstar for position that they already dominated in. You need to go to sleep.
And sometimes top prospects become stars. Idk if a potential franchise player is worth a closer and mediocre SP
Profanity isn’t de vires by miles. Prellers broke. He’s out of a job next year too.
It’s not at all
Yup. And sometimes you trade Fernando Tatis Jr. for the shell of James Shields. When it comes to prospects, everything’s a crap shoot.
18 YO is young. No guarantee he pans out. That bullpen just became lights out in the playoffs and Miller could convert into the SP he’s wanted to be. He could be better than Crochet if he does. It’s a good deal.
I’m sure they are going to trade Robert Sanchez now and maybe Dylan Cease. They need outfield help.
Plenty of #3 prospects in baseball history who were at AAA have failed to do anything. The padres just got 4.5 years of mason miller.
They gave up an 18 y..o. prospect in low A ball with zero guarantee that he will ever even play in the majors let alone defy the odds to become a superstar.
Good thumping, sir.
Did your uncle used to play in the xfl?
Mets- but they didn’t even give up the catcher Ethan Salas in this trade. I hate the Dodgers probably like you? So I’m ok with all of this. Lol.
When you look back at trades, it is almost always better to acquire the star. The Soto trade was one of the few that didn’t turn out like that.
So what?
10 years ago the #3 prospect was … Addison Russell.
a teenager for 8 cheap years of mid 20s guys that have already proven themselves in the Show. Also gives them more flexibility to deal bullpen arms for further reinforcements.
Would’ve liked a bat if moving Leo, but still hard to argue with the return, and gotta wait to see what other moves they pull off of this move
High A
Ethan has been injured most of this season, nobody is willing to trade for him at his current price
a young #3 in all of baseball
Preller will trade anybody. Thing is, I don’t know how they keep coming up with these top 10 prospects.
They gave up a lottery ticket,the kid is in A ball, for one of the best relievers in all of baseball who is under contract for what, 4 more years. Stop it.
So? I don’t see them eating Bogarts awful contract in the near future. When they are willing, they can simply buy a top vet. Bichette in ‘26, Henderson will be a free agent after ‘28.
Aj Preller is an idiot.
#1, 3, 13,and 17 prospect …. A’s fleeced him.
The Padres window is going to close when Bogaerts and Machado start showing their age. Sometimes you go for it while you can.
And Tatis wasn’t even considered the best prospect in that trade. Erik Johnson was considered the top player the Padres received in that deal.
As always, a prospect is just that, a prospect. Especially at 18 and in A ball it does not compare to proven MLB level talent.
AND I am a big fan of watching prospects and buying into their hype. But I dont see De Vries reaching MLB before his 21st birthday and that does no good for an all in Padres team in 2025.
#5 But either way an 18 year old playing A ball. Jo Adell at a similar age was #1 prospect and at best should be a 4th outfielder.
Great trade for 2 controllable MLBers with one being top 3 at his position. Also gives the team flexibility to trade from strength now or the off season. This offseason also gives AJ more $ to go after free agents.
Buffoon is off the mark. The definition of buffoon doesnt apply to a smart risk taker. You take some swings and miss, but there’s no guarantees on guys like de vries ( look what happened to wander franco )
@Cody. Taylor trammel was #5 when the padres traded him.
Seems like lot of people here could use a nappy nap
@dumpster. A mimi or a dirt nap.
300 years ago the #3 prospect was … Abigail Adams
Suked because I had Dolly Madison in my fantasy draft. Ended up working out tho few cabinets later. Had my cakes and eat it too
It’s worth noting that the players received will be controllable throughout the competitive window for San Diego.
@dumpster. My point is people overvalue prospects and complain about them being busts like the cubs, and not trading them when they had value. Rinse and repeat. I still have my Brandon wood jersey might need to dust it off it could be worth a couple pennies.
Let me introduce you to the Baltimore Orioles, circa 2023-24
Roob, there is virtually zero chance that DeVries never plays in the major leagues. Prospects like him are the rare ones who will fly through the minors on the way to a fine career in the bigs. Similar to Bryce Harper when he was coming up.
And when all is said and done, DeVries will indeed be the star.
Not a lottery ticket at all.
Jo Adell has proven this year that he is more than a 4th outfielder. He’s become one of their best players.
@hammerin. Except for his costly errors in the field, and errors on the basepaths. He needs to go back to right field, but currently they dont have a centerfielder.
For trading for a closer with an ERA close to 4?
Josh Hader had an era over 4 when they acquired him. Next season he turned in a 1.28 era. There’s a reason padres have one of the best pens in the game running out Adams who the rays fixed, Estrada who the cubs gave up on, Suarez who was signed from Japan among others in the pen.
Miller is more than a closer, he’s wanted to be starter for a bit. And this year, if they dont move Suarez that bullpen is serious lights out in the playoffs.
Nobody likes a stats geek who looks at numbers in a vacuum only and not how athletically talented they are and what their history is.
A’s won the trade, but Mason Miller’s current ERA has nothing to do with it. He’s a top-5 closer in the game.
OMG no. A’s just robbed them blind. De Vries is an absolute superstar.
No Vaseline. Prellers international reputation takes a major hit from this.
He’s hitting 245 in high A. I get it he’s young for thr level but that’s why hes ranked high. But no he’s not even a superstar in high A
At 18. Dude is a physical freak and every evaluator in the sport agrees he’s as sure fire a major league star as anyone that age in the minors.
And Mason Miller is injury prone and has an ERA near 4. One of those guys with a reputation that miles exceeds his actual production.
Vaseline? You have profanity above as a typo. Take your meds!
The question though is when, is it going to be this year or next or the year after that and is he going to make the A”s a playoff contender when they can’t even get a ballpark built. This prospect maybe a future star but the organization he belongs to now is definitely not playing to win it all.
You aren’t a doctor just a man playing 2b without a bat
Miller’s ERA is inflated because of their ballpark. His ERA+ is 111, which means he is 11% better than average.
His current batting average has no bearing at all on his future outlook. He’s one of the youngest players at that level and holding his own.
As a padre fan, we got freaking fleeced. This move makes zero freaking sense.
@TDR: Miller is a top5 Reliever in the game right now: couple rough outings two months ago skewed his topline 2025 stats, which still look like 3ish ERA, 1ish WHIP, 14ish K/9. Strong prospect pedigree, currently 26 years old, with 140 MLB innings of mostly dominant results, aka he is established not a flash-in-the-pan type. He is cheap: makes league minimum and has yet to begin arbitration. He is controllable: cannot become a FA until 2030. We just got a 26 year old league minimum salary dominant closer for this year and 4 more at the cost of a teenager who has just as good a chance of becoming Rhymer Liriano as he does James Wood. Not to mention the 4-5 established starer still in his 20s making league minimum with 4 years of control. I wouldve liked an impact bat if Pads were set on trading Leo, but the return is far from a fleecing.
Both teams did well. The A’s may be the long-term winners of this trade—it’s a great haul.
Now when they trade Cease and Suarez people are going to be confused.
Well the Cease price just went up to recoup the prospects from the A’s deal.
@thatsIt?. Im guessing that’s the angle. They get a left fielder and prospects back.
Prellers a mad scientist. He’s just way more Frankenstein than Bill nye here. You love the headlines. Hate the moves and need to hold him and organization accountable. It’s nonsense devires was moved.
Depends on what they get. I expect the return would address current and future needs. Both will walk after this season, most likely. Besides Cease has been major ugh this year.
Whoa!
Love Preller and his aggressiveness!
Miller is a stud!
That said…yikes!
This is a haul for the A’s.
How does this affect getting another bat for LF?
If it does, then the Pads have to get creative.
I don’t know.
I’m torn on this.
It’s gross and one fastball from preller resigning
Maybe trade Suarez or Cease or even both… for catcher? LF? Or maybe prospects to get one or both of those?
Then just trade Salas for a component cf that can run since Merrill is abysmal this year
Merrill definitely is not abysmal, he hasn’t been super good but average on offense and a plus defender
Go compare him to Jesus sanchez on the year. Get back to me after.
Merrill is so much better than Sanchez. Sanchez is 27 while Merrill is 22!!! They are basically the same offensively, granted, for now…. but Merrill is so much better on the bases, so much better defensively and is much faster than Sanchez.
Numbers don’t lie. This is beyond sophomore slump stuff. Merrill isn’t acuna. He is Adam Eaton though.
Also, Jackson Merrill’s war is higher, not only this year but career wise. Merrill played only last year. Sanchez has played for a couple years now and has 1.5 less war
Yeah, numbers don’t lie Merrill is better. He has plenty of years ahead of him to improve so I don’t wanna hear it
Daniel palka crushed in his rookie year too.
Just get real aBout Merrill. He ain’t it and hes much closer to this than the balloons people fluff him on this performance are made out to be.
He’s a good player. Sanchez is too despite the Injuries and lack of pt in front of him.
Merrill had job day one. This is who is is and it looks a lot like Clint Frazier today.
Okay, fair enough. I guess we’ll see in the next coming years.
I don’t doubt it but this is how we have yo value Merrill today yea
Devries is supposed to be insanely talented.
But being insanely talented doesn’t mean a thing to your typical MLBTR commenter. By God, they want to see a guy who’s proven it with a track record!
Devries looks to be a long way from the mlb. He’s not exactly lighting up A ball. Padres have a shot. I love the balls.
Oh boy
Great get for San Diego
Nice deal for the A’s. De Vries has superstar potential.
Potential
adjective
1. having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future.
2. latent qualities or abilities that may be developed and lead to future success or usefulness.
Leo could develop into a Major Leaguer… or not. Superstar? We’ll see in 5 years if that’s close to being true. Meanwhile, Miller is controlled for that duration. I’ll take the proven arm over potential any day. Cheers Jbigz!
@gwynning. People are also forgetting about the era being inflated because the a’s play in a little league park and have a tuff shed as the press room. Sears and Miller should settle in petco, and maybe they will enjoy the ac and catering.
And free Pepsi machine, Huds!
🙂
That would do it for me 😉
Won’t they miss the charm of the Little League facilities?
SDP will be too loud with all the fans and activity. The military flyovers.
Plus free kibble for the little creatures since it’s….Petco
Gwynning, don’t forget that arms are riskier than bats, and Miller is “only” a RP.
Gotta give up something to get something, and the Padres gave up a much higher ceiling for a star RP. Obviously, if the much higher ceiling also came with huge certainty that would be a massive flub by the Padres, but the much lower floor that comes with a De Vries relative to a Miller is the balancing factor, right?
Each franchise gets a return it likes more than what it gave up, which is the aim!
@redsox. Yeah, but if they trade saurez, and cease. They can easily get 6 prospects and possibly a left fielder. This trade is for guys under control and they should be able to recoup the farm without punting the season.
If I was a GM I would try to accumulate 80% position players vs pitchers. Players with 3 or 4 tools. Power is the 1 tool that I wouldn’t emphasize. That can be taught and developed as they get older and stronger.Too many pitchers arms abused at an early age.TJ surgery can be a big help but it has its limits
You can also trade for and sign Pitchers as a free agent.
@gwynning – You are on the money. Padres getting quality pieces that should help for years, and give up on potential that is far away plus a couple of arms that may or may not be able to make the leap.
It is actually a good thing if both teams benefit from trades. Although I hate to see Fisher benefiting in any way, shape or form…just a terrible nepo baby owner and the franchise deserves so much better.
Plus the Padres will probably flip Miller after the 2026 season and get something good for him too
Apropos that San Diego is where they perfect the flip given Ray Kroc started the franchise
It’s not so much De Vries as it is the trio of pitchers. Baez and Nett could both be in their rotation in a year and Nunez is a similar pitcher to Miller, 99 mph heater with a slider.
Sears HR/9 is one of the worst in the league amongst starters.
On top of three pitchers the A’s get De Vries.
That’s a nice haul for the A’s.
@bwmiller79. Have you seen where he plays? I haven’t seen the spilts, but I bet most of the homeruns are in Sacramento.
His HR/9 is bad over his entire MLB career, it was bad at the Coliseum.
@bwmiller79 I feel like I’m in the Truman Show seeing how many times the analytical crowd act like they’ve seen a prospect all their life going to Oakland/Sacramento and proclaim they’re the “greatest prospect ever, A’s won this trade”
I never seen him pitch live, Sears, haven’t even watched much of him on the YouTube, but am abreast of the stats as I shoot for a profitable season against the book.
Sears in the bullpen is a good move, I like the trade if that’s what the Padres are thinking, he could make big strides with a different mindset. Only have to see a hitter once, can work on keeping the ball down more.
It’s a big splash of a trade, the big concern Id have is the potential for Miller to blow out his arm. In that way alone, the A’s take a lot of risk off their plate and stack up while the turkeys still hot.
What are your trade secrets for beating the books young man? You’re abreast of the stats, I seem to be more aleg and awing of the analytics the way my portfolio has been floundering. I’ve run afowl of a winning record tho I did score a HR bonus on DK
An awesome haul for a reliever who’s been injury-prone up until recently.
I mean every MLB player was just ‘potential’ at one point. Kid has all the skills to be something special.
He’ll easily be a major leaguer. The only question is how great will he be.
So do Nett and Baez
They got Nett and Baez too. Both will be starting for them by August of next year. Hate this trade for the Padres.
Both are unproven. I’ll take the proven Major League controllable arms.
I get that buddy, but got a strong feeling both step into the A’s opening day rotation and do well. Plus, gonna hate watching Leo develop now, as I do think he’s gonna be a star.
Gonna wait and see, but hoping Miller can make the switch to top end starter next year. If he does, that’ll change my mind (or if the Pads win the WS).
All criticism is fair, but as with every trade ever we can’t really judge it until 5 years down the road. Will be fun to revisit!
sure, but Baez and Nett (and Nunez) have a ton of value and have an excellent chance to have careers that rival Sears’. They seem mere throw ins here. Miller has had arm issues….and if he stays a RP, they’re dime a dozen. The only way this trade works in Pads favor is next year Miller transitions to SP, where he is unproven. Wow Preller really going all in here. Next up the budget cutting moves expelling Cease and Suarez.
Budget cutting or need addressing? LF needs a baller to put this lineup over the top. I’m ok with our Cs, and Sheets is perfect as a DH.
Congrats to you and your team. Have to go for it when the opportunity presents itself
Thanx Flan, good luck amigo.
Your guys just swept us— they looked real good
They could have package 3 prospects (such as Nett, Baez) to get a very good RH bat
The day is young, Brewski…
How about Nunez getting a handle on his slider, cutting down the walks and becoming an elite closer? His K/9 is ridiculous.
Sears is a proven butter baller. He butters them up before they get launched into the bleachers.
Brew-By ALL accounts, AJ’s not done yet. Got no doubt we’re gonna get 2 bats by 6pm.
Why does SDP want Sears? Lefties have extra value and results in that stadium are skewed.I think he gets flipped before 6pm EST. There isn’t much salary savings.
They still could use an OF.
Preller has Cease,Sears,Suarez, Arraez maybe and others to get the best OF
There are A, B, C type OFs. Type B should work
He’s building rotation depth for both this year, and next while betting on Niebla to unlock something the way he did for Pivetta. We can get our bats through some combination of Cease/Suraez/prospects trades.
Something like Cease, Suarez, Salas, and another prospect could surely pick us up another bat or two, plus a recoup of *some* prospect capital…especially when AJ just upped the cost of obtaining pitching.
I like this trade if JP Sears is moved to the bullpen and replaces Peralta or Matsui. Sears could be good in the bullpen, could develop into a top flight LHRP, finding a way to keep the ball out of the seats for one inning a game.
The return on RP this year at the deadline has been significant. That also bodes well in that the Padres down the line. That trend might not hold up, bats seem to be short in supply and RP was a crazy sellers market with a lot of demand.
Two nice bullpen arms if that’s the plan, adding Sears to start games seems like a losing proposition.
Remember what Niebla did for Pivetta. Wouldn’t be surprised to see JP grow into a solid starter soon. Niebla’s the best in the business.
Kept Cease, Suarez and Salas but still got an All Star in O’Hearn and a LFer having a career year in Laureano. Great job AJ! All-in for this year, and apparently next too!
Baez is going to be the ‘sleeper’ in this deal I predict. He seems like the real deal and then some.
If he were going to any other organization I’d say he has superstar potential. But the As aren’t going to develop him to maximize that potential
@Kershaw
Jacob Wilson, Nick Kurtz, Lawrence Butler…. Mason Miller himself..?
The A’s are very good at developing talent, it’s paying and keeping them they suck at… Lazy comment tbh
THAT hurts! Ahahahahaha!
Wow!
Didn’t see that one coming. Good on SD.
And as predicted, Brian Cashman says he’s “not comfortable with market prices;” and Aaron Boone claims that getting back Leiter Jr, etc, from the IL are like mid-season acquisitions….
Same mistakes, leading to the same obstacles, leading to the same results…… every single year.
Meanwhile, teams that are equal with us, or ahead of us, are making legitimate, substantial improvements. This team is so frustrating! Always two steps away, but content to stagnate.
But it’s right there in front of them and they’re ready to turn the corner. Not only do they have the best shortstop in the league, they are the best team in the league.
Haha! He’s f’ing ELITE! At least he’s hitting, but goodness, an error in nearly every game of late. And the 16 errors don’t include all of the poor throws Goldy saved. He’d probably be at 25 errors to this point if not for Goldy.
I know that Yankees fans feel as if the Steinbrenner kid is only a small chip off the old block. Best guess is that Cashman basically takes the heat for Hal not wanting to spend in the same way as before, but they forget that they still are a huge market with revenues that dwarf most others and they can afford more contractual risk than any team but the Dodgers.
I would lend you Dombrowski for a couple of seasons to revamp the organization but you would have to give us Aaron Judge, Lombard and Jones to make that deal happen… ; )
You can at least say you’re not a fan of the evil empire
That honor belongs to brooklyn west ( not a fan , here )
Padres already have one of the best bullpens in baseball and just gave up their #1, 3, 13, and 17 prospects. I guess that’s a fair trade but if they were willing to part with all of that, you’d think they would pursue an area of higher need than bullpen.
True, RCT. I’m surprised that was the move they made, especially considering all the buzz around potentially trading Cease.
As for NY, Cohen wants to win and understands that the asking price will be high; yet, he parts with necessary pieces to acquire Rogers AND Helsley to take a relatively weak Mets ‘pen to one of the strongest, imho.
Cashman is so analytically driven that he can’t address a need if it’s perceive as an “overpay” by the stat nerds.
The one prospect I was hoping they didn’t trade and yet they still have a hole in left field.
With Miller and Sears in the fold, I would expect to see them move some surplus pitching (Suarez? Cease?) to address the LF situation.
Yeah this is awful asset management. What the hell. Go get Maton and Coulombe for half that price.
Yup. Coulombe is even a better pitcher this year. Disaster for SD. Reeks of a GM who’s expecting to get fired unless he can deliver a WS appearance this year.
I don’t know about “Great” trade. Sure, you gotta know when to make a ballsy trade but I don’t think this is it. Prospects are prospects until they prove themselves otherwise, sure. I just don’t think this was the traded they needed to do with their only trade chip. Even if they end up trading Suarez and or Cease to fill the rest of the holes, I think they’re doing to much shuffling.
The A’s are going to get really good really quickly. That is quite the haul they got back from the Padres today. You can find a viable closer on the market this winter or promote from within your organization. I’d be very happy if I was an A’s fan.
Nett, Baez and Nunez all are MLB ready and may end up having more value than DeVries in the long run
Nahhh, Nett and Baez will be fine MLB starters, and Nunez could be a power arm if his command improves, but De Vries should handily outperform the rest of the package.
Did you mean to be funny?
key word “may” I’ve watched all four prospects play in quite a few games, so my two cents from first-hand observations
He’s 18. And it’s the Padres we’re talking about. When is the last time they won the World Series? Have the balls to make the move when it’s time.
They’re also both pre-arb. Cry about an 18 year old all you want. This is a great trade by SD.
Mason Miller has an ERA near 4. WAR less than 1. There are actual better relievers on the market than him, and you gave up one of the best young baseball players in the world, a guy with a ceiling at MVP level, for that. A good reliever.
Yikes.
Seam- never… never never never … judge a reliever based on WAR. We all know that!
Seamaholic/Seamaholic 2 I’ve seen your many comments praising John Fisher and Vegas so no surprise you’re gaslighting here
Mason Miller has a 3.76 ERA, not a 4.00 ERA. He is striking out 13.9 per 9 IP which is the best in baseball. His chase rate. whiff%, and FIP are all in the 96th percentile or better. Sorry but you are wrong again.
The Padres had the balls on the Soto trade, which is part of the reason they have a gaping hole in LF. I like Preller overall, but the man is addicted to the splashy moves. I’ll let the day play out, but I’m rueing this so far.
Soto was a Seidler want. Nothing Preller could have done to talk him out of that… although, in hindsight, I wish we never traded for him. I’d rather have Wood, Gore, etc.
Oh well!
Jed Hoyer is the Anti-Preller of the world. We’ll see if he has anything up his sleeve this afternoon, but it’s like watching paint dry with this guy.
Padres have Sheets in LF. No hole there. The Padres have a hole at RHB with power. Doesn’t matter where they play.
@ Padsfan Sheets is a 1st baseman playing left field, not a left fielder, and yes there’s a difference. I will give credit where credit is due and say he is worlds better than he was at the beginning of the year. Still the matter of the fact is the team would be a lot better if they were to get an actual left fielder, say Steven Kwan, and be able to move Sheets to a DH/back-up 1st baseman where he’s better suited to play. An occasional start here and there in left is fine, but as a starting left fielder it’s a stretch to go all the way.
wow
Why would the Padres do that? They already have a killer bullpen. What does this do for them?
I have heard the Padres want to convert Miller to the rotation next year.
I honestly think that’s a bad idea. With how hard he throws, I think he’ll end up needing Tommy John by the All-Star break. I think he needs to stay a reliever to have a longer career.
Yeah the starter business seems crazy to me. You make that move if a guy is struggling or maybe coming back from injury, not when he’s a known talent.
So he can be constantly injured again. He was never healthy as a starter.
Why would they do that? He already has a UCL problem and moving him to starting games would not help his arm moving forward.
Because Preller probably has 3 other things up his sleeve, and this was the first domino to fall. And even if he doesn’t, you can never have enough bullpen arms. The Royals were a legendary Madbum outing away from winning back-to-back World Series with starters that basically only pitched 4 or 5 innings because the bullpen was that dominant.
That was long ago now. You can’t do that anymore.
@seamaholic: other than the dodgers winning the world series in the least long ago example possible.
@Mets-Because they plan on making Miller a starter, so Cease it probably on the move now.
He always injured as a starter. They saved his career by putting him in the bullpen.
You have to keep up with your competitors in the playoff hunt, Dodgers, Mets, Phillies. I don’t see the Padres getting rid of Suarez just to try and match the fire power, and also it keeps Miller from going to the Dodgers.
Years of control
Padres will deal both Cease & Suarez
before end of day.
Getting 4+ years of control and could still flip Miller before FA
@Mets Writing on the wall, next to be dealt Robert Suarez and Dylan Cease, for cash savings
Allows them to trade Cease and Suarez
Their closer is a soon to be 35 year old flash in the pan.
they already have 3 other closers on the roster, in addition to Suarez (who won’t get much return in a trade)
Stupid
The tennis racket is stupid?
Huh?
That tennis racket made Jim Cornette’s career!
Happy with getting Leo
A’s now have their face of the franchise
Leoooo Las Vegas
Yes, they have The Big Amish
True, and he is still a few years away, but why go after a SS prospect when you have Jacob Wilson still in his rookie year? Somebody’s got to move to 2B by 2027.
Why go after the 18 year old who is already the #3 prospect in baseball? That’s a hard question
He’s not even coming to the big leagues for at least another 1 and a half years so the A’s don’t have to do anything yet
I’d have to think Wilson moves over to 2nd because his defense has been bad in the majors
I think Wilson would move over to 3rd. His strong arm plays perfectly there.
Now thats a hot stove
Someone met their asking price.
Wowzers! AJ is not afraid to take a big swing. Miller for 4 years and Sears means they can now flip Suarez or Cease.
Cease to Sears is a MASSIVE downgrade.
Baez and Nett to Sears is a downgrade
We’ve all had time to marinate in it, Brew… how do you feel now? Granted, I abhorred losing past arms in Jarlin, Cole Wilcox, Patiño, Snelling… heck even Drew Thorpe and many others I’m forgetting… but where are they now? Will a Rule Fiver in Kolek, Bergert, Braden Nett, Henry Baez, and Eduarniel Núñez go the same route?
I was wondering why AJ and the padres were quiet…
AJ’s trades are always quiet beforehand… further evidence of why they drop so hard.
A.J Prellar does it again.
Does what again? Hope this is tongue in cheek, his teams haven’t sniffed a championship. He’s not even winning division titles
And where are the A’s? Worse position than the Padres.
You blame him for trying, dairy_bonds? Unique perspective…
Padres are GFIN, good for them!
Preller cooking!!!
Great deal! San Diego dominates the Trade world…again!
Yeah preller has numerous trade pennants in his office !
Literally lol’ed, thank you gents!
Damn, A’s already won that trade and terms aren’t fully announced yet. De Vries is going to be an absolutely stud in a few years.
We’ll see. Calm down lol.
tom brady burner acct
Whoop, there it is!
Holy crap, Preller is a madman!
Preller just can’t help himself.
Wonder if this means Suarez and Cease are on the move today
The man just doesn’t sell. And he pushed all in on pitching when there’s two gaping holes in the lineup and a weak bench. I hate this.
Days not over year
Any of King Cease Suarez could be on the move
IMO better to address thd biggest needs first and work down the list. I would’ve been okay with De Vries for Duran or Kwan, but a reliever when there’s still a boatload of options on the market? Seems like overkill.
They’re cheap. Which is why they cost so much. And for a team that’s been up against the tax lines last couple season cheap is necessary for a few years.
De Vries for Kwan would have made a LOT more sense, yeah.
Prospects are cheap, too! I’m betting that at least one of Bergert/Kolek and Nett/Baez is on the move, too. Miller will be a fantastic replacement for Suarez, but I prefer to address the gaping holes in LF and C before adding to a strength.
No it wouldn’t have cause Kwan comes with 2 years of control not 4. You’re getting less team control.
Nett/Baez already gone, included with DeVries for a RP
Yeah, a guy referred to as best reliever in baseball with 4 years of control wasn’t gonna come cheap.
Guess what happens the next 4 years. 4 drafts and 4 IFA spending periods. People act like Padres will never draft another other or sign another international teenage again. Hey it’s your party and you can cry if you want to.
Sure, and the Padres are elite at talent acquisition. But they’ve rapidly depleted the farm’s top twice in four years. I don’t mind trading the lesser prospects (who might very well be solid 3/4 types), but I look at De Vries like I looked at Wood (Wood was the much better prospect to be fair).
You look at every player prellers traded the list of players who didn’t make it or had short runs less than 5 years of success far out weighs the list of long term assets he’s traded away that have had sustained success 5 or more years
People focus on the Trea Turners James Wood types Mackenzie Gore but forget the Zach Eflin, Matt Wisler, Quantril, Luis Urias, Trammel, Luis Patino, Robert Hassell, Dylan Lesko
lol
not
Insane move, wasn’t expecting it. They hold onto Salas, but that farm system is genuinely cooked going forward. Wonder when they’ll decide to sell.
Farm systems go up and down EVERY year with every draft. Sit down and chill and let the adults make adult moves to try and win the World Series, not win who has the best rated minor league organization.
High five for this.
So many people over value unproven minor league lotto tickets. Padres are better today then they were yesterday and their bullpen is now a real problem for opposing teams
Unless it’s the Angels farm system, which just lies there curled up in a fetal position, waiting for Arte to sell the team.
They have 4 years of Miller. Thats 4 years worth of drafts and ifa spending
I have a strong feeling they’ll be able to restock the farm with 4 years of drafting and ifa spending. Just a wild hunch
This is nuts. I think the Pads will regret this.
Preller may have made a Too Clever by Half move.
Yeah, Miller’s elbow ligament definitely has an expiration date and it’s probably not too far off.
This could wind up a YUGE disaster for SD in a few years if De Vries is the real deal.
Reminds me so much of the Padres acquisition of Tatis Jr back in the day. Maybe they’re just giving back, or the devil has come for his due.
Comparing miller to shields is like comparing _______ to ________
Pick your analogy
Post of the day, Mark. Hands down!
I like this a lot for the A’s.
Wow! Can’t believe they traded deVries.
more concerning is they threw in Nett and Baez, where were fast rising top 10 prospects that were MLB and probably will have better careers than Sears
Since “can’t miss prospects” frequently do, I’m not sure why you’re so concerned. Preller (or whoever replaces him) will just draft more. I think you’re acting like fans usually do, which is overvalue your fandom team’s players & prospects and undervalue other team’s assets
losing two 2026 ready SPs with upside seems to be a reason for concern. Not saying they’re better than Miller! Saying they have tons of value, and have more upside than Sears
True, not just drafting .. but signing Carib 17 yr olds
Preller needs to go
Boo this man! Why Hate?
NOOOOOOOOOO Preller on his damn coke again
SDP going for it. Wow.
That will solve the problem in LF good job Preller trade the #1 prospect for a reliever when SD already has the number one bullpen. That means Suarez is likely gone but what can you get for him?
Tyler O’Neill!
Ship Suarez to the Blue Jays in a deal for a young hitter you can plug into LF , Nathan Lukes
Ship Cease to the Cubs in a deal for someone in AAA like Jonathan Long
There’s trades to be had that can bring back prospects by dealing Suarez and Cease and address the LF issue.
Cubs should happily take Cease back for a decent hitting prospect like Long (not Caissie for a rental).
Padres must’ve found a pile of loose change in the couch cushions.
The final blow for Preller. Leo for a RP
And three other highly ranked pitchers
Fire preller
I love the MLB trade deadline so much.
That’ll put the Padres in great position to lose in the NLDS again. AJ Preller is intent on running that team into the ground
If he had some patience this team could be great. Imagine if we still had wood, abrams, gore, munoz
My point exactly. The Padres decided they were going to compete at all costs starting in 2019 and it hasn’t gotten them anywhere
Um, the word is relevance. They keep having a relevant team, that draws big attendance.
We’ll see how relevant the Padres are in a couple years when they’re back to being a 90+ loss team
MLB Strike and/or world war
Umm, I’ll take MLB Strike… no, World War… no wait… ah jeez… pass.
Wow. Huge trade.
A’s gave up a stud but are getting the best prospect that will be moved this deadline.
Daily reminder that Miller is still pitching with a partially torn UCL and the Athletics have just been gaslighting everyone hoping they’ll forget
Dr Neil El Attrache is that you?
Dr. Neil Re-Attache’.
Peeler def serious about Padres contending. LA Deferrals better step up their game or they might not win the NL West. Padres are only 3 games back
Friedman def needs to get more impact pieces before trade deadline expires
Anthony Peeler sighting!
Norman Vincent Peeler
Oh no! We can’t lose the regular season title! Oh, the humanity!
Seriously though, it’s an interesting move. We’ll have to see what the return is for who the Padres sell.
If the Dodgers get healthy I like their chances even without any moves. That being said, another bullpen arm or two wouldn’t hurt. We need to get our other two way player, Kike, off the injured list.
I don’t know that the Padres needed to do this but it certainly can’t hurt the team in the short run. An already strong bullpen just got much stronger.
Wow!
Preller got the steal of the year.
Preller going all in….
Padres are GOING for it. Damn!
Awesome trade for the Sacramento A’s.
*WEST Sacramento Athletics Baseball Club
That ballpark is the West Coast Wrigley. The A’s should never move again.
Preller has relapsed. He always wants a big fish.
He should have read Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea before getting that big fish….
Call A J ishmael
The reliever market is crazy. Miller will be phenomenal for the Padres for years, but I’m absolutely pumped for De Vries as an A’s fan. A’s haven’t had a prospect of his caliber is well over a decade
A’s
Uh, Nick Kurtz
Right, who needs Leo down the road when you got Nick today
I like this deal for the A’s. I want to wait four more hours to assess the Padres side of it.
Jacob Wilson?
Nick Kurtz?
Those guys were mid 30’s prospects on the top 100 list, they’ve just outperformed that
Goes to show you that unproven prospects are a crapshoot when it comes to rankings
For sure but all mlb players were once prospects. Prospects that hit are the most valuable thing in baseball for team building because they are under control at an affordable cost for years. That’s why they are worth the risk
Which is I guess why this trade works for both teams
Stove just blew up!!
Good move but Mason Miller starting would not be ideal to keep him healthy..
Don’t get it. Yet.
I know we rarely see eye-to-eye on basically any Padre transaction, but you’re always a Compadre to me, amigo… where are you at after today?
The Padres need to fix their offense. Their pitching is already great, but they’ve only scored 445 runs.
De Vries for a reliever lmaooooooo
And a starter. Both with multiple years of control.
Who is 5’6 and bad
Sears is 5’11”
They have about 9 starters better than Sears, so his control matters little
Miller probably takes king’s spot in the rotation next year
Miller is taking Suarez’s spot in the BP. Starter talk is crazy for this guy until I hear it from the Padres brass directly. Even then, seems like a terrible idea.
He’ll stick as a RP, cheaper than Suarez. At expense of DeVries, Nett and Baez. What a bizarre way to get under the 2nd tier of CBT.
Wheeeeeeeeee. Woweeeee. Wowzers.
Aloha Gwynning, congratulations to your Padres! I remember watching Miller’s debut a few years ago live against my Cubs in Oakland as a starter then. I wish him well in SD! Mahalo Nui!
We’re stoked, braddha! Multiple effective arms for years of control… for a teenager. Just a friendly reminder that ALL prospects are suspects until proven otherwise… cheers kg! Aloha
Who’s we?
Everybody in this room high-fiving each other. We *seem* pretty stoked!
About giving up the #3 prospect in baseball for a reliever?
I’m not stoked Gwynning.
Fair, Brewski. Let’s reassess in 5 years.
we might reassess in 2 hours too, hah
As a padre fan and the majority in my group chat, we hate it. This doesn’t move the needle at all. Do you really think this move makes us that much more of a WS contender this year? You don’t trade star level positional talent for a volatile relief arm, especially when we already have 4 potential closers. Plus I’d bet at least one of Baez or Nett will be much better than Sears.
Pads were never gonna sniff the WS this year , let’s be real ( not a dodgers guy )
It could play out as a plus move in years to come, if Miller’s arm stays intact as a starter in next yrs
Big if
Ua ua hele aku!
Keyword: prospect
Keyword: Turner, Fried, Wood
Add: Tatis. Sometimes they hit. Not a guarantee.
The ones Preller trades away always seem to.
Keyword: France, Liriano, Patino
Really hoping Jed has a plan here. NL contenders building monster bullpens yesterday and today while Cubs seem content w retreads like Keller (having a nice yr, to be fair) and young guys like Palencia. Cease and/or Suarez could help…
Really wanted Cubs to go in for Duran if he was going to be traded. They certainly could’ve matched or beat the return Minnesota got for him.
That should fix that weak Padres bullpen.
(Sarcasm)
Preller is keeping the pen strong while lowering the payroll after he trades Suarez to go get a good starting LF.
He knows what he’s doing.
Sit down and learn from a pro.
@JScottG. In other words, ownership is telling a playoff bound team they’re selling off their closer and core SP, expelling no. 3 prospect in MLB plus 3 MLB SPs that were top 10 prospects, all with the goal of saving about $6M despite the team being #2 in attendance in MLB.
?
Preller is doing what he’s told to get under the CBT 2nd tier, but I doubt it’s enjoyable being the henchman for a penny-pinching ownership. And hardly worthy of my admiration
Many here said De Vries wasn’t in play but here we are.
Preller going all in yet again, now lets see if he gets that elusive Left Fielder he’s been looking for
They were saying the same thing about Mackenzie Gore. Send Cease & Suarez to the BoSox for Abreu or Duran. LFGSD!!
I would never deal Durán for Cease and Suárez.
Gonna take more than two expiring contracts for any of the Red Sox outfielders Abreu, Duran, or Rafaela.
Breslow blocks Preller’s number if he offers that.
I feel like the injury to Marcelo Mayer keeps them from moving an Outfielder now that Rafaela is getting the lions share of games at 2B. Campbell is not ready to comeback up offensively (not sure about defensively) so they kind of need all of the Outfielders right now
That’s what I came in for. Last year, it seemed like Salas was the greatest prospect in history, and now he’s meh. Yesterday, DeVries was the greatest prospect in history, and now he’s gone.
I love it!!!!! Padres overpaying for everything under the sun. Their future is looking pretty terrible. Keep selling it away Padres!!!
Meanwhile the Padres are 3 games back heading into August. Let’s go
The Padres are in a wild card playoff position right now and have added talent to catch the leaking oil Dodgers.
The Dodgers have just played their worst (long) stretch of bad games by far and the Padres are still three games behind.
And they aren’t 3 games behind because of their bullpen. So there’s that.
about to trade Suarez and Cease for peanuts (a bat) just to pinch pennies, how does this make the team better placed to catch the Dodgers THIS YEAR?
Suarez leads league in saves, better ERA than Miller
Cease >>>> than JP Sears
@brew. The era is overflated in the Sacramento sandbox. I bet they both bounce back. Pads get cheap controllable players and probably can recoup the difference. Sears was probably the throw in, because Miller’s price has always been high. I say if they can get 4 top 100 prospects back for cease and saurez maybe a left fielder throw in. It will work out for the year and the future.
He did prevent the dodgers from getting Miller. I wonder if the dodgers drove the price up while having something else in mind anyways. They seem to enjoy doing that the last few years.
Regardless, this helps the dodgers in the future.
@another dodgers fan. Miller’s price was 4 top 100 prospects last year. My guess is preller is going to trade saurez, and cease and try to squeeze in a left fielder. They were going to lose them anyway. Its getting cheap players and shedding salary if get decent prospects back its a push, and helps the future.
@Rex I’ll admit you make a good point about this year’s stats (the Sac’o’tomatoes ballpark). Sears is Vasquez-like, or even Vasquez-light. I don’t see him as anything but a depth piece on a contender. Fortunately he has 2 years of minors control remaining so some flexibility there. Would have preferred they keep Nett (huge upside) and Baez and Nunez (closer potential), rather instead of Sears.
@brew’88. I bet they trade cease and saurez to get something back. Also they could trade Miller at a later date, dude is still highly coveted. Just seems like they were acquired to be replacements while saving money. You can get more than a QO right now. Wouldn’t surprise me if something is already in the works.
Four top 100 prospects for Cease and Suarez rentals is not happening. Not even certain Cease is gone. I think Suarez for a decent but not great bat is likely.
@mlbtop100. We got four hours to find out. I was saying 4 total btw. Its really not that far fetched.
The padres want to make Miller a starter again in the future which is why they went all in on him. In the meantime the bullpen will be legit insane
We’ve seen the modern MO of how bullpens win series… let’s hope my Pads can finally get fitted for some bling.
It’s a thought for the future possibly. For this year he’s bullpen. Period.
What will the Yankees do??
@Vergil9000
They will do nothing. Players are too expensive. This isn’t the 1990s Yankees.
Flip Miller for Jarren Duran?
Heck no!
No. Stop.
Head scratcher.
this’ll shake out well for the Padres when they move him into the rotation next year. they’ve done it with success with king, miller’s always maintained interest. stud closer for the stretch, possible high end starter for a few more years.
just guessing i’m not a padres fan, just be surprised if that isn’t preller’s plan after moving a nice asset. especially if they fall short this year
King was already starting for the Yankees when they traded him.
Luis Severino must be seething with jealousy.
He’s got $67 million to comfort himself with.
I wanna see who the other 3 prospects are, but great return for Sacramento in getting De Vries, regardless. I hate to say it, but great things are on the horizon for them.
Preller acquires controllable pitching, making rentals Cease and/or Suarez available to fill other holes in the Pads lineup. Well played, AJ. Well played.
Somebody who gets it. So many narrow minded children in this comment section who believe the minor league prospect rankings are the most important stat in MLB.
Sears is now our #8 or #9 SP. Wonder if he has more trade value than Nett/Baez? Probably not
You’d think James Wood, Abrams, and Gore would teach the man a thing or two…guess not!!
Yes the Nats have 3 exciting young players and are still stuck in the lottery. Meanwhile preller keeps aiming for the top in a very crowded NL
Some people just aren’t capable of learning from their mistakes.
Padres bullpen is first in ERA. I guess they’re going to trade from that strength now to upgrade their offense? Preller is not done lol
The A’s get another player that will restock the farm system in a few years
Baseball is a pathetic mess. We have to many cheap owners that would rather be a major league level AAA team. Why spent money developing prospects when you have have teams like the A’s Marlins and Pirates that can develop players for you and then you can trade for them
There needs to be a salary floor, without a salary cap.
The owners would never agree to that.
I know, that’s why the situation is bad.
There should definitely be a Salary Floor if the team is getting extra $$ from Revenue Sharing/Small Market.
Soccer, if you don’t have prospects, you cant acquire guys like Miller from the A’s, Marlins or Pirates.
Stearns is texting Preller right now.
What is it going to take to get Robert Suarez?
“I’ve got Marte with $7 million to cover the remaining salary, and I have prospects for you!”
Tylor Megill plus Starling Marte with the salaries paid by the Mets for Robert Suarez?
Wow.. that’s all the As got in return? One dice roll? I seriously don’t understand some teams.. yikes
My apologies.. 4 dice rolls
Aside from the fact that Sears is cheap, why him? Springs would have been better and made this deal more tolerable.
You answered your own question. The payroll.
I’d rather have the upside of Nett or the skillset of Baez, than I would Sears
I guess they think he is at least as good as Cease, but cheaper and could ultimately get them a LF. But the future is getting nothing but old.
Cease has been a CY vote gette and still has great stuff, so hard to imagine they’d consider Sears a viable replacement. But they’re going to trade Cease for a bat and pray that King returns without a glitch, Pivetta continues his career year, and Yu gets back to vintage Yu, because that’s what they’re running into a 5 game playoff series.
De Vries is a 18 year old kid that won’t be on a MLB roster until at least 2029. He’s seen a lesser prospect than Franco or Tatis and of course for every Franco/Tatis there is a Robert or Robles who don’t turn out. Peller is into to win along with the players on this club.
Wrong on all fronts. 1. He will be in the big leagues by 20-21 years old. 2. He’s not seen as a lesser prospect than Tatis.
Franco as in Wander? Not the type of guy you bring up to make your point.
easily by 2027, if he can tighten up his defense
Leave it to Preller, he makes trades that make headlines. the Soto trade, then the Cease trade, and now the Miller deal. You cannot say he does not better his ball club when he makes these deals; he does not look toward the future; it is what it is it is now that is important. I think that is what is wrong with some of these teams thinking and GM’s, we are proud of our prospects, so we don’t trade them, but yet their ML club when it has a chance to do something special this season, do not go all in. The championship banner will always wave forever, unlike a prospect 6 years down the road. that may not produce a championship but looks good in a uniform.
This trade seems to look to the future. Both Miller and Sears have multiple years of control.
So does de Vries
So does MLB-ready Nett, Baez, Nunez
Miller >>> than Nett, Baez, and Nunez…combined. He could also be a starting pitcher next season. Kotsay talked about that and Preller has talked abut Morejon stepping into a starting role next season as well. Trading both Bergert and Kolek hurt more than trading any of those 3.
From Padres organization
that traded:
Ozzie Smith, Trey Turner,Roberto Alomar,CJ Abrams, James Wood, McKenzie Gore, Rizzo and etc..
They have a long history of blockbuster deals.
Preller is certainly a
“riverboat gambler”.
This is only his opening salvo.
Before the deadline clock runs out,
I expect at least 2 more block buster deals from the Padres:
1) Starting pitcher Dylan Cease
2) Closer Robert Suarez
+ more
To fill holes in LF, catcher
And DH.
If you want to go farther back when they were originally owned by Jay Arnholt Smith back in 1969. He had the Padres GM sell off his players to make payroll, he did not care about winning only looking at payroll, so this franchise has a history. I believe this team has come a long way.
They just got O’Hearn and Laureano from the Orioles! Def filled the LF and DH holes.
Seven players? Did I read that right? Or does this mean three of the four are pitchers?
Three of four are pitchers
At least AJ made sure to keep Salas, the prospect most likely to make the type of impact other former prospects have had for our Pobres. Guys like Campusano, Urías, Wheathers, Franchy, Margot, Lamet et al…
Salas has back issues and can’t hit.
I don’t think he would do this but………..what if Miller is the piece that gets the Red Sox to say yes to trading Duran or the Guardians to say yes to dealing Kwan?? They don’t call him the mad scientist for nothing
yeah what if huh
Coukd the Padres end up with Kwan before the day us over… wow
How, they don’t have anything the guardians would want
They could dip into Bergert/Kolek now, really all they have unless Guardians want Cruz/Mayfield
If you are talking about Cruz as in Schoolcraft they are not allowed to trade him at this summer’s deadline. And that includes making him a PTBNL.
I don’t know that Miller even buys a ticket to SD. Have a feeling this is just the first domino tipped …
This feels like a disaster for the Friars unless then win a WS this year. Yikes.
No it won’t, you like the Vegas move so of course any cheap-out is a “chess move” to you.
What are you even talking about?
The Madres before this deal had a bottom 3 farm system. They now ship off the only player keeping them from being 30th.
Fantastic.
Full trade, per ESPN sources:
Padres receive: Closer Mason Miller, LHP JP Sears
A’s receive: SS Leodalis De Vries, RHP Braden Nett, RHP Henry Báez and RHP Eduarniel Nuñez
The Las Vegas A’s are going to be good, man.
Skeptical about A’s ownership, I have my doubts about what a winning team is toward the ownership. When they are playing in a AAA stadium for 4 years or longer, groundbreaking on a ballpark in Vegas was more a farce than being a real ML franchise. It is really hard to see this franchise as being good.
“Las Vegas A’s” and “good”? Really, man?
Yes. See above comment.
WOW! That SD bullpen looks down right scary
It was already scary
I love getting more pitching. You gotta give to get. DeVries has the chance to be a great player, time will tell…
I had Baez as the most MLB ready impact pitcher in our farm system. The give wasnt just DeVries here
Crazy. Padres pretty much always get who they want, always find a way. Except for Sasaki, but he hasn’t looked amazing in LA.
There’s no grading this deal until we see what Preller does the rest of the day, make no mistake this comes off as a 2 team trade but unless Preller sits on his hands the rest of the day this is really a 4-5-6 team deal that the Padres are smack dab in the middle of after they move Suarez, Cease or whoever else. Stunning deal nonetheless.
Baseball America says de vries is the highest ranked prospect to move at the deadline since 2017
Padres fans in denial.
Abrams was a #1-3 depending on the site quoted. Preller is unafraid to move top prospects for proven MLB players.
This is Smart by the A’s restocking their pitching Farm before the Move into new stadium 🏟
Stranded Mariners Fan in Los Angeles propping up a cheap-out move by Fisher and the stadium.
I’ve seen it all.
always the Padres. Keep throwing stuff against the wall and see what sticks.
Preller giving away the farm
If no championship this year then it’s definitely time to move on from A. J. Not that it hasn’t been for like 3 years now. Only has 1 year left on his contract after this one unless they extended him and never announced it publicly.
Padres are playing to a full house every night, making record revenue, and winning more than they ever have in their history and you think that the ownership would fire the architect of that team just because they don’t win the WS? Are you kidding? That would be killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.
You were hankering for them to fire him 9-10 years ago and now you’re defending him. Why the change?
I have been commenting here less than 1 year.
By the way you wanna talk about golden eggs? CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore and James Wood combined are worth 10.1 WAR so far this year. With a third of a season left to play.
Which has what exactly to do with my comment?
Maybe on the current account.
It means any golden eggs he might lay just get given away to someone else.
You’re acting like you’ve watched De Vries all your life. We’ll see 5 years from now. The A’s have traded and cheaped out and “WON” apparently so many prospect trades before…..
I like the pitching prospects they got in return and they got rid of a Malcontent… 💯 thjs js a Great trade for BOTH
Who is the malcontent?
Now that’s a trade! Miller is a stud but De Vries is in the same trajectory as Junior Camanero. However, the Padres have a long track record of turning out the top SS prospect in the game with Tatis, Abram’s and De Vries. Will be a great deal for both teams.
Twins are morons. This haul is so much better than the haul for Duran. Yes I know that Miller has more control, and the A’s deserved a bigger haul but not this much bigger
4 yr vs 2 is huge
Great trade for Padres. I always thought whoever got Miller is getting a dominant bullpen are for the playoffs race for 2025 and potentially a SP for 2026 (Miller wants to be a starter long term). Good trade AJ
Dude, the Padres are so fun.
Nerve-wracking too haha
🤙🏼😎🤙🏼
Athletics team should be contracted. What a shameful organization! They used to be competitive in the 80’s. How sad!
Why? It’s not like this trade doesn’t work from a value-for-value standpoint.
Found Trump’s MLBTR burner
Dude. What’s not fun about and think about Kurtz and De Vries when they open the season in Vegas?
Kurtz will be traded by year 4 I predict
Dude,
There’s nothing fun about unproven prospects for your potential face of the franchise and All-Star, and there’s nothing fun about an owner giving two middle-fingers to two cities and cheaping out every year only to be saved by the occasional FO maneuvering and on-field managing “just good” enough to make and be eliminated from the postseason……. Unless you live in Vegas or you like the fantasy story of “sticking it to the libs” for having their pro sports teams grifted out by their owners out of spite.
Dude, I have more complaints about A’s ownership than you can imagine, but this is a bad take. A’s have the 2nd most 90-win seasons in MLB since 1990. They’ve consistently competed while working under tight salary constraints. They won the division 5 years ago. Did you not catch Moneyball?
Is Suarez going to be moved in a deal for Duran w BOS? White Sox learned hard way having two closers in the bullpen together w Kimbrel and Hendrix.
The move the Dodgers needed to make. Looks like they’ll be heading into the rest of the season with one of the worst bullpens in baseball.
We’re about to get healthy. Rotation in 1 month will be
Yamamoto
Glasnow
Ohtani
Snell
Kershaw
Sasaski
May in the pen. Banda as the closer.
You spelled Vesia wrong. And if he the closer, Dodgers are in trouble….
Vesia has way more cred to close than Banda, but only by comparing desperate measures. Normally I’d say wait until the bell rings later today to see what kind of under-the-wire deal Friedman pulls off, but since all the good moves are already off the board, the message is don’t expect it.
I don’t know about the prospects. Is this guy better than Lombard or Arias? I think Cashman made a mistake and needs to resign ASAP!!!!
I meant vesia lol no clue why I said Banda
It’s madness to pencil Sasaki into the rotation. He’s is a long shot to even pitch in the majors again this year. Besides, I was talking about the bullpen. It’s a mess.
But I can’t imagine the Dodgers offering what the Padres did for Miller. Thought you guys were going to get Helsley
I can at least imagine it. The Dodgers have a top prospect sitting on the shelf, blocked forever, and refuse to deal him. I don’t get it. Also, the Padres got both Miller and Sears, with four years of control on Miller. Worth the cost. They made already the best bullpen in baseball even better. Maybe the Dodgers can still pry Bednar loose from Pittsburgh, but if they are holding back their best trading capital then I don’t see how.
Suarez gets dealt (not to the Dodgers hah!) in the next 3 hours, so there’s that. There is a part of this deal that’s about the Padres trying to get under the CBT 2nd tier, so I suspect Cease will get dealt also.
Dodgers certainly demonstrated last year that the best bullpen can win a WS, but they also developed a formidable back end of the lineup and depth on the bench, which remains the glaring need for the Padres. If they trade Cease (for budget reduction reasons) and intend instead to use Sears as replacement, then the Pads rotation going into playoffs will be made up of mere ifs ands or buts.
Bednar would be a great add. Let’s see what he costs, so far RPs are getting quite expensive.
Now it seems the Yankees are the most likely destination for Bednar.
We got robbed man. I know everyone likes De Vries but he’s got a long way to go just match Miller’s production and that’s only IF Miller stays in the bullpen which I don’t think he will. And for us to throw JP Sears in the trade….. What is our FO thinking. I see a lot of Padres fans don’t like they trade, well, as an A’s fan I don’t like it either. This could end up being one of the worst trades we’ve ever mad.
I did not want to give up De Vries, but Sears for Baez/Nett/Nunez is fine. Baez and Nett should be 4/5 starters with upside by 2027
Here is a good question, if Miller and Sears was dealt to the Dodgers how Padres fans would be feeling right now, would they be upset with Preller for letting that happen.
Miller is a huge get (I like Sears as a complementary piece with control), but the Padres need to worry about themselves before considering their competition. Is that worth De Vries and a good chunk of pitching prospect capital? My gut reaction says no.
@straightup What do you see in Sears that I’m missing?
Lefty, 3 years of control. Fills the zone. I don’t wanna overstate this, but he reminds me of Pivetta. I think he’ll play up a bit; worth noting that Pivetta was giving up a ton of homers (albeit in Boston and Philly instead of Oakland).
I’ll give you the lefty value, that can come into play. And that he’ll likely improve when he gets out of Sacramento’s park of horrors. But the Pivetta comp seems a hard sell. Pivetta has hit and miss stuff. Sears’ K-rate will be lowest on Pads rotation group, lower than Vasquez’. Pounding the zone is good but not if they hit it hard.
Sears’ career K% is 6 points better than Vasquez’s. I think there’s a lot to like in his profile. He doesn’t have Pivetta’s rotation upside with the stuff, but his FB and slider are moving in the right direction on a per-pitch basis. Average K%, great BB%, and durable (didn’t miss a start in 2023-2024). Just get the homers under control; call it Pivetta-lite from the left side.
you’re correct, In thinking of him as a comp to Vasquez I confused k rate with hard hit rate (which are nearly identical). Looking a little deeper with JP, I think you’re take in general with Sears is more accurate than mine. Raising my hope/expectations.
It’s all good; I was definitely in shock this morning. I still haven’t moved on from De Vries, but Sears seems like a solid mid-back rotation bet for the next few years.
Dude, I hope regular A’s fans aren’t as moronic about baseball as you. You have the best front office in baseball and you don’t even know it.
That front office has saved John Fisher so many times, that’s why they’re the best to you, Seamaholic/Seamaholic 2
(Seama = Seattle Mariners)
Calm down fam you guys got a good one.
A’s prepping for Vegas….
Y’all keep hyping up DV like he’s already an All Star but fact is he’s still in A-ball. There’s no guarantees he amounts to anything.
He’s 2-3 years younger than the average age of his level and holding his own offensively. He’s a switch-hitting SS who will probably be in the MLB by his age-20 season. He’s very, very good.
Esteury Ruiz? Franklin Barreto?
Wow, this trade is a certified banger. Can never have enough arms in the playoffs and the Padres got two good ones. De Vries a ways off, but you never know what can happen with a fireballer like Miller, and they don’t NEED him right now.
White Sox in shambles as they shop the ghost of Luis Robert around.
Sears is a soft-tossing VERY back of the rotation guy. They got one good arm.
Ah, yeah you’re right sorry I was thinking of Springs. In any case, this’ll be a fun one to track for a few years down the line.
It’ll be interesting if they think Miller can still start
As usual with Padres trades no rumors in advance and no one saw it coming. Once again they trade their #1 prospect that everyone said was untouchable. I don’t think that word is in Preller’s vocabulary. Padres pull off biggest trade of the deadline.
That is Preller’s MO. When you see rumors about what he is “going to do” they are almost always wrong.
Don’t underestimate the potential negative impact of the pressure this puts on Miller either. A position with the smallest sample size measures in the game. You go from pitching for a team with no fanbase and no expectations, to a team that’s going to let you know who they traded for you every time you blow a lead. Oof!
Yup. Why relievers are supposed to (and usually do) have pretty low price tags.
wonder if after Suarez is jettisoned, Miller blocks Adam, Morejon or Estrada from a closer role they deserve?
Suarez won’t be jettisoned.
2026 Padres pitching staff if no additions in offseason
Starters
Musgrove
Pivetta
Darvish
Morejon or Miller
Bergert/Kolek/Vasquez/Sears/Waldron/Hart/Wolf
Bullpen
Cl – Miller or Estrada
SU – Morejon or Estrada
SU – Adam
MR – Peralta
MR – Matsui
MR – Hoeing
MR/SU – Reynolds
LR – one that doesn’t make rotation.
Rodriguez/Pena/Espada/Marinaccio/Krob/Knehr/Jacob/Morgan
I don’t see a problem with that staff. Still very good.
Great post Pads. My Offseason wishlist is to bring King back, and maybe retain Nestor if he’s still Nasty.
Honest question. Why does any team, not just the A’s trade a player with so much control?
They got four players with 6 years of control, which is the most you can have?
Control only matters if the player is in MLB. All 4 players the Padres traded are prospects. De Vries has about a 70% chance of making it to the majors and I believe he will be a great player, but he still only has about a 3% chance of becoming an All Star level player (4.0 WAR or higher) based on what other prospects ranked #10 or higher overall have done in the past.
Top 100 prospects have a 17% chance of becoming a league average player or 2.0 WAR and none of the other 3 traded are top 100. Their chance is much lower. Only one is a 50 FV prospect, Nett, which means his ceiling is MLB average. .
Leo de Vries is why.
De vries alone was worth the trade, A’s had to do this
And I’m sorry but a reliever isn’t gonna put butts in seats in Vegas
I don’t think a major league baseball team can put butts in Vegas, not with that owner and history.
Everyone comes when it’s new but the moneyball ain’t gonna work in Vegas. Especially with Raiders and Golden Knights in town
Cubs are getting schooled this deadline. What a disgrace.
I mean, saving ur top prospects isn’t a bad thing. I’m sure they will get a deal with Pirates done soon, cubs always fleece pirates
De Vries has value but is quite overhyped. He has never really looked that great. Definitely not an “elite” prospect and I’d be surprised if he is still Top 10 after the next update.
Could end up the next Orlando Arcia.
Reminds me of fellow overrated Padres prospect Ethan Salas.
I’m not a fan because preferred other position prospect or sp prospect but de vries is the age of a high school senior in high A. He’s 4 months older than Ethan Holliday, 4 months younger than Billy Carlson who were top 10 picks in 2025 draft
if he was overhyped, he would have commanded more than a RP in a trade, no?
Salas is not overrated at all.
He is currently injured.
Padres dodged a bullet by keeping Salas.
Some commenters were saying similar things about CJ Abrams
and Trey Turner when the Padres traded them.
Get back to us in 3+ years and your tune will change,.
I would have been embarrassed to ask for those extra pitchers from the Padres. Good for the A’s.
I’ve chilled a bit, so I don’t mind the Sears for Nett/Baez/Nunez component. The Padres get three years of a L 4/5 for two SPs I’m fond of, but I’ll take the rotation stability going forward. They still have Kolek and Bergert to round out the back of the rotation with Yu, Pivetta, and Musgrove next year. De Vries is what hurts.
DeVries is what hurts most but Nett/Baez/Nunez are MLB ready, and have a lot of trade value. Sears is Vasquez-light, if that’s possible. I doubt he would be in any contending teams rotations.
I don’t trust Vasquez at all. That ERA is a total mirage, but they should keep riding him while the results are good.
I have faith in Nett and Baez. Nunez is intriguing, but almost every team has at least a few reliever prospects with big-time stuff and zero control. I wish him the best, though.
Strandy has an angel on his side, clearly. I retract my comp with Vasquez, after further diving into Sears’ details.
Seamaholic/Seamaholic 2, you’re a Fisher bootlicker, we get it, the A’s just acquired the second coming of Cal Ripken Jr. and Derek Jeter combined.
So what happens to Suarez?
He will be traded if the Padres get a very good offer before the day is done.
If not, the Padres will roll out the best bullpen in baseball.
Top bullpens have won championships for other teams
and covered for other areas on teams that needed upgrades.
Finally a trade that makes me go wow, during a trade deadline that otherwise has been notable for its lack of impact prospects moving around
That being said – this is a package you send for an elite starter not a l reliever, and i don’t think Sears counts
If we had to give up 1 of the big 2 I would have preferred Ethan “Venezuelan Austin Hedges” Salas.
You are obviously not a MLB scout and do not do your homework
because knowledgeable scouts rate Salas with the potential to be the next Buster Posey.
This will be interesting to see unfold. Padres will almost surely move Miller to the rotation but can that realistically happen this year?
No doubt Preller has other moves in the works.
That’s a risk
Padres don’t need him in the rotation.
They have already successfully moved at least 3guys to the rotation.
And, they could flip him after 3 years and get the same or more
than they traded him for.
The padres have listened to my JP Sears fan club and freed him from the A’s !!!
Great deal for the As. Can’t tell on the Padres yet until they trade Cease (or not).
They’ll recoup prospects,not at de vries level but probably improve over the 3 pitchers
Padres always gotta do the craziest trade deadline moves, especially for relievers. It’s their MO at this point
lol the Padres fans defending this
“Lol Padres fans defending this”…And when teams do nothing the “fans” and haters complain even more, so essentially it’s damned if you do, damned if you don’t.
If they turn around and trade Cease for a haul it’s a lot better trade than it seems. Miller and Sears could also be 40% of their rotation the next 3 years.
Lol the analytical crowd not realizing they’ve whiffed and are going to whiff this A’s trade for prospects again. It’s weird.
Miller obviously has more value long term if he can convert to a starter, but I like the package the A’s received. Padres gave up quite a bit.
Athletics win this one by $14m according to BTV
That site is a joke. Read into how they calculate their values. It’s 1st grade math.
Not surprised, Nett, Baez and Nunez have a ton of value
Baez was Padres Minor league pitcher of the year last year,
Icebreaker
Padres had to do something big to move the market and backfill
catcher, LF and DH.
He’s on pace to be MiLB player of this year as well (sub 2.00 ERA)
Pteller always makes the deadline fun. Him and D.D.!
The point isn’t to have fun the point is to win trades.
the point is actually to win games
CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore and James Wood combined are worth 10.1 WAR so far this year. So how’s that for “actually winning games?”
lol that’s irrelevant. the point of trades for contenders is to make the team better to win more games. the point for sellers is a better foundation for future teams to…win more games.
if you disagree with that, I’m not really sure what universe you live in.
That was a huge overpay for Soso.
How does this trade help the Pads win games this year when we know Sears will replace Dylan Cease, and Miller will replace Suarez and Nunez?
we actually don’t know that yet. my guess is Preller is making moves to be at least as competitive in 2025 but keep an eye on the next few years.
but if Cease or those relievers bring back a LF or C it could be an overall improvement.
Brew, I don’t have a dog in this fight, but I think this trade helps the Pads now in that they’ve freed up rentals Cease and Suarez to be traded for additional help. Cease and Suarez are big trade chips and Laureano, Mullins, Kwan, O’hearn, etc are still available.
@LFGSD619 I’d rather try to win the WS than win the top minor league rankings.
I’d rather have CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore and James Wood back.
I think both Miller and DeVries are a bit overrated, but my main concern would be structure.
1-Does this not create an issue with Suarez? I’d be real annoyed if I lost my job in my opt-out season. And, if they trade him, doesn’t Preller lose a lot of leverage now? Unless he already has a deal in place.
2-Given what the Phillies paid for Duran, this feels like a much higher cost for not a much higher acquisition.
3-And finally, SD is 1st n BP ERA by a fair margin, 13th in rotation ERA, and 23rd in RPG. I’m almost certain more trades are coming. But if not, De Vries looks like he’d have been better off traded for an SP or a hitter.
Miller is controllable for 4 years. Suarez will probably be traded to clear off some payroll and get some prospect capital in return. This move is more for the next few years and not just 2025
1 – I doubt this affects Suarez; his opt-out was guaranteed unless he gets injured.
2 – Padres got an extra 2 years of control and 3 years of a SP. Huge difference.
3 – Agree with you 100%.
1. I think a trade involving Suarez is already in place (AL team), but he won’t garner much of a return other than a mid-level prospect or two – not the impact bat that they need now. Miller is cheaper than Suarez and that is clearly an important message we’re getting from Padres ownership.
2. I agree – I’ve never seen so high a price (in prospect capital) for a RP.
3. They can acquire a cheap rental bat (RH preferred) but ownership doesn’t seem to want to spend even a couple $M even, which is alarming. Trading Cease and Suarez to a contender won’t gain anything but prospects in return. But the Padres are running out of prospects to trade, even for a cheap rental bat. I don’t think they value any of the available catchers out there much more than Diaz/Maldonado, so I predict no action here.
Pads got fleeced
A’s got huge return
Some consider devries the best young prospect in all mlb, probly beneficial for him to move from sd to a’s
And baez great arm as well, tho sacramento likely not a great spot for pitchers
Now the world will see what I have said about JP is true
With a good team behind him he will shine !!!!
3 teams with bullpen better than the Cubs and they all go out and secure to notch closers . While the Cubs aka Hoyer/Ricketts go dumpster diving for replacements.
Cubs fans need to start boycotting Wrigley until Ricketts starts respecting the fans instead of all the false promises
And the Pods will still lose in the first round – if they even make the playoffs.
Guy needs to pitch more than one inning and teams need to start using these guys in more than just the 9th inning.
A’s were very cautious with miller injury history
@Asfan0780
I understand but these so-called closers need to be able to shut the door completely for a few innings. I agree with Goose Gossage in that he knew the importance of a shutdown guy who could go multiple innings from the pen.
The people saying sometimes they don’t work out… the Top-5 prospects form Baseball American workout about 90% of the time. Go back and look, not all had long careers but go back and look they all have at least a good season or multiple years. There’s very few complete busts.
Toilet Bowl Fisher just keeps lying, about Oakland, about Vegas, about keeping a core to build around. Worst owner in baseball…
Imagine, if you will, being mad about getting the #3 prospect in baseball plus more for a reliever who is about to need TJ and a back-of-the-rotation starter.
Imagine, if you will, looking back at so many trades where analytics and prospects rankings have failed to properly assess a prospect’s true talent. And you people are able to say it now cause hindsight 5 years later is always 20/20.
“PadresWSChamps2025” is a great troll name. At least it didn’t fool me.
Unlike Miller, when the A’s need to extend De Vries, they will be able to afford it after years of drawing 5+ million per year in their overcrowded Vegas stadium!
The best trades are the ones that hurt both franchise fanbases.
Taking it in a bit more now, the only guy I’m gonna miss is De Vries (and man, it feels like it could be a huge loss). I like picking up a lefty starter with control, and Padres, for now, have an abundance of backend options in their rotation with Kolek, Sears, and Bergert for 2026 and beyond. I like Baez and Nett more than their rankings, but Haynes and Patino could be future backend depth. Nunez is nasty, but Padres have plenty of BP options, so give to get.
I hate giving up De Vries and specifically giving up your most valuable trade chip for a reliever with the current state of LF and C. I need to see more.
Take a look at Mendez too. He may end up being in the pen instead of the rotation because of having just 2 plus pitches, but he looks good. I forgot all about Luis Patino.
Post-prospect hype is real. Crazy to think he’s only 25. I think he’ll still make it to the majors in some capacity.
Mendez is REALLY good
Listening to talk about this trade and the consensus is that Preller is looking both to strengthening the pen this season and to replacing Suarez who almost certainly leaves as a free agent at the season’s end. The best bullpen just got much better.
I would hate it if the Red Sox traded a prospect as young and as good as DeVries, but you cannot fault Preller for his moves. They always seem to make the Padres better.
Massive talent pickup for A’s. Good for them.
#3 ranked prospect doesn’t always seem like it is.
Seems like a lot….Sears added in for all that? Geez.
I know Sears is not the name in this trade but I do feel he will contribute to Padres these final 2 months and can in coming years. He has stayed healthy and takes the ball every 5 days. In starts in San Diego the ballpark will help him as it should reduce his homer issues.
Preller’s head needs to roll if the Pads don’t win the WS.
RE tw
I don’t agree with this type of thinking. At all.
It’s like deciding if he should keep his job based on a series of coin tosses.
Too much randomness in a short series to make those kinds of decisions
Preller has built a consistent winner in SD and can interest seems to be very high.
Can’t ask for much more than that
Neither Miller nor Sears are short term control players. They will be Padres for years to come.
Padres have been in the playoffs 3 of the last 5 season and 2025 should be #4.
The Padres have seen increasing revenue for Preller’s entire tenure with the team to the point that a small market team is now a revenue sharing payor. They are making money had over fist.
The stands are full every night and season tickets have a waiting list. Thousands of people are paying the Padres to sit in queue just in case a season ticket comes available.
Preller won’t get fired if the Padres don’t win the WS. He might if they don’t make the playoffs.
1.. Miller is a stud who can either replace suarez (thus suarez moving for an impact bat ie Kwan or Robert) OR he can be the fireman in the bullpen… or the 8th inning guy. We have seen for many years now that shortening a game with an elite bullpen is a huge advantage in the playoffs.
2. Sometimes prospects pan out, but the Padres are built to win NOW.
3. Most often high end prospects become pretty good players, but not superstars. I’d rather have Miller now.
4. Miller could be used as high end trade bait in the future.
5. JP Sears…. no one talking about him. His XERA is a run lower than current ERA. Perhaps with better defense behind him he could become a decent back end rotation for the stretch run.
6. Having Sears means they can technically move cease for that needed OF spot, plus clearing payroll and dramatically improving defense, baserunning, and OBP if they get Kwan.
And what if miller gets injured
Asfan – a “what if” (fill in the blank for person) gets injured is ridiculous because any player can be injured at any time.
Very interested in how the Padres story goes over the years, after constantly trading top prospects, and with a trio of massive, aging contracts.
So far Preller has kept the ship afloat
Tigers go get CEASE and SUAREZ. Go big! Rotation would be Skubal, Flaherty, Cease, Mize, Paddocks. Bullpen with Vest and Suarez at back end not too bad. Can hope probably will not happen though
They need both Suarez’s, but dropped the ball on getting Eugenio from Arizona, as well as Miller, Helsley, or any decent upgrades. There’s still a chance for Kelly or Gallen, but I’m not holding my breath after the last 2 days.
Preller went for the jugular!
I love Preller and the Padres
-a Dodger fan
Note: this is not snark. I don’t love this move for the Padres. But, I get it, it’s fine. Depends on what else they do. What I love is that they are aggressive and creative and go for it.
I enjoy the new rivalry.
I think the Padres have a good team
I think the Dodgers are still better.
Mookie Betts said in a blog that he thought the Padres had the better team last year and Dodgers were more worried about losing to the Padres than to the Yankees.
Some are saying the Dodgers-Padres playoffs series was even better than the World Series.
It was.
SFo
People are weird about that World Series
It was incredibly close.
Game 1 came down to the final PA
Game 2 came down to the final PA
Game 3 was mostly all Dodgers. Yankees made it a bit interesting in the ninth.
Game 4 was all Yankees
Game 5 was epic.
Amazing series.
As was the Padres series.
this trade is going to turn out worse for San Diego than the Juan Soto trade did (when they gave up CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, Robert Hassell and James Wood.
Very unlikely since that trade has already produced 3 All Stars with a potential for 2 more.
I like De Vries a lot, but Wood was a better prospect when he was dealt.
One of the GMs who made that trade still has his job. It’s not the guy who got all those players.
For now.
@Jarred Duran
Assuming you replied to me, Padre ownership would be stupid to get rid of Preller with how they clearly have reached their payroll limits.
The organization that, by its own admission, needs to leverage its farm system more instead of signing high-priced free agents should keep the guy who excels at stockpiling minor league talent
The time to consider getting rid of Preller was 2021. The organization did not, and should now banish the notion indefinitely.
lol k
@Jarren Duran
LOL muted
LOL how will I sleep?
Tigers deserve a first round exit for not getting this deal done. They has the prospects to do it.
Clark or mcgonigle would be been comparable headliner prospect
Exactly. Either Harris is a doofus who is asleep at the wheel or Jr. is scared to spend money. Either way, a punch in the gut to loyal Tigers fans who have been waiting for a title since 1984. I’ve been waiting since I was age 1, and while I now live 2 hrs from Tampa and root for the Rays as well, we all know Detroit has a better shot as long as $tu is running the Rays. I need to pick another team that actually spends money because between Harris/Illich’s indifference during the deadline and $tu’s lack of doing anything, the Rays and Tigers will get in, but they are out the door by round 2. Screw corporate greed!!! Give your fans a trophy!!!!
I absolutely hate losing De Vries, he is going to be an absolute stud, but as we saw with Abrams even top prospects do not guarantee the team they are going to will win. Abrams, Gore, and Wood have combined for 10.1 WAR this season and the Nationals are squarely in last place while the Padres have been in the playoffs twice since the trade and its looking like 2025 will be a third.
Preller has gained 2 proven MLB players without having to trade from the current squad. He took the best bullpen in baseball and made it better. He also gave the team flexibility going forward since Miller and Sears are under long term control.
Miller will step in as part of a one-two punch with Suarez this season.
Next season Miller could be a starter next season if Suarez comes back. If Suarez opts out then Miller can step in as closer.
If Miller stays in the pen then possibly Morejon moves to the rotation next season.
Sears is a back of the rotation starter that won’t impact the team much this season but will give the Padres more depth in the rotation. I don’t see him taking many starts away from any of the current starters though. I could be wrong about that but he is a soft tossing lefty that induces soft contact but can’t strike out many. When his control is off he gets crushed. He may be sent to El Paso or used in long relief when King returns considering how well Bergert and Kolek have pitched in their starts.
RE PF
“even top prospects do not guarantee the team they are going to will win. Abrams, Gore, and Wood have combined for 10.1 WAR this season and the Nationals are squarely in last place”
No. Because 10 wins from 3 players in 2/3 of a season is pretty good, but 10 wins is far from enough to guarantee a playoff spot. The other players also matter
Especially when the Soto and Scherzer trades are the only good things Mike Rizzo has done in the last 5 years and the Nats have been arguably the worst drafting team of the last 10 years!
After the trade the Padres kept winning while the Nationals kept losing even though everyone said that Preller had killed the Padres organization by trading away that group.
“even though everyone said that Preller had killed the Padres organization”
Everyone didn’t say that.
You’re listening to the wrong people if they are saying dumb things like that.
Were it not for that trade the Padres would be leading the NL West by double digits right now and the Nats would be making a run on the Rockies for the worst record in baseball.
JC
That’s a silly thing to say. You can’t possibly know that.
Plus, the Nats would have traded Soto to someone else for another haul.
If not for that trade and the subsequent trade of Soto to the Yankees the Padres would not have made it to the NLCS that year and would not have King, Cease, or Vasquez and would not be in a position to contend this season.
So far, the Padres have had more WAR from the Soto and the players they received for Soto than the Nationals have received from Gore, Abrams, Wood, and the others in that trade. The Padres have also been to the playoffs in 2 of last 3 seasons and are on pace to make it again this year while the Nationals are holding up last place.
Since the Soto/Bell trade the Nationals have the 3rd worst record in baseball. Since that trade the Padres have the 4th most wins in MLB, tied with the Yankees..
Yes, everyone said that. Even MLB Network and BA said that.
@JUJH It’s not a silly thing to say at all that trade set the Padres back years and is the only reason the Nats have won any games at all this year.
@Pads Fans Go ask anyone who isn’t a Padres fan right now who they’d rather have between King, Cease and Vasquez or Abrams, Gore and Wood, I guarantee they’ll pick the latter!
The Padres absolutely still make it to the NLCS in 2022 without that trade! Juan Soto was HORRIBLE in that NLDS against the Dodgers.
Preller was always going to have to rebuild the Padres rotation after 2023 no matter what. No Soto trade and he has Gore filling one rotation spot and then Samuel Zavala, Jairo Iriarte, Steven Wilson, Robert Hassell III, Jarlin Susana, Robby Snelling, Dylan Lesko, Graham Pauley, Adam Mazur, Jay Beshears and $ to trade/spend to fill the other 2. If they don’t sign Bogaerts then probably Blake Snell is still a Padre. King, Cease and Vasquez don’t mean trading for Soto then flipping him for pitching was the only way to rebuild the rotation. It means it is the way Preller ended up rebuilding the rotaiton.
Padres are about to lose King (who is out for the season) and Cease (who has an ERA approaching 5) anyway.
“Since the Soto/Bell trade the Nationals have the 3rd worst record in baseball. Since that trade the Padres have the 4th most wins in MLB, tied with the Yankees..”
And the gap would be even wider if Preller never traded for Soto.
Facts matter and you have not stated any.
Abrams and Gore put up more bWAR than Soto in 2023. Abrams, Gore and Wood have put up more bWAR than Cease, King and Vasquez in 2025 and are making less money and have more years of control remaining. There’s your facts.
Of course it’s a silly thing to say
You’re predicting a hypothetical past.
Oh. And Juan Soto had a .485 OPS against the Dodgers in the 2022 NLDS.
@JUJH The Soto trade defenders are so stuck on “The Padres have won more games than the Nationals since that trade” and they either don’t realize that that’s despite the trade rather than because of it or they do realize that and just wanna troll.
Padres would have won the most games in baseball and the Nats would have won the fewest were it not for the Soto trade.
Gore is better than any of King, Cease or Vasquez now. 2023 the Padres didn’t make the playoffs even with Snell, Darvish, Musgrove Wacha and Lugo.
I said trade some combination of the players I mentioned for starting pitching. I know they are not in the majors now. You either lack reading comprehension or are a troll. Not sure which is worse.
They always say they are ready to return now and then hit yet another setback.
If you are going to include Cease in the Soto return you also have to account for Samuel Zavala, Jairo Iriarte and Steven Wilson. Padres could have actually used Wilson this year.
So you should think about who’s wrong then.
Nice cherry picking. He had a .727 OPS with 2 HR in 11 hits in the playoffs that season. In the NLCS he had a .944 OPS.
BTW, the Padres WON that series against the Dodgers after Soto got s single to tie the game in the 7th, stole 2B, then scored the go ahead run on a Cronenworth single. No Soto, the Padres lose that game and possibly the series
JC
“The Soto trade defenders are so stuck on “The Padres have won more games than the Nationals since that trade” and they either don’t realize that that’s despite the trade rather than because of it or they do realize that and just wanna troll.”
Ok?
You still can’t say with any certainty what would have happened if the trade hadn’t been made.
1. Kim scored the go-ahead run, not Soto.
2. If he played better the rest of the way the Padres don’t need him to do that.
3. The Padres lost the NLCS so Soto’s OPS there matters as much as CJ Abrams, MacKenzie Gore and James Wood’s combined 10.1 WAR this year.
RE PF
“No Soto, the Padres lose that game and possibly the series”
You don’t know what.
Whoever replaced Soto might have homered 3 times.
@JUJH A valid point. But what we do know is that in general Soto did not play well in that NLDS. And it’s more than just a little ridiculous to cite Soto’s .944 OPS in the NLCS (that the Padres lost) and simultaneously act like Abrams, Gore and Wood’s combined 10.1 WAR this season doesn’t matter just because the rest of the Nats team is hot garbage on a cold sidewalk.
Sears is not as good as the young starters they already have at the back of their rotation: Kolek, Bergert, Vasquez etc..
Perhaps, Preller is thinking the Padres pitching coach can unlock more value from Sears and that Sears will benefit from pitching in Petco Park?!
Obviously, this is AJ Preller’s openly salvo on Trade deadline day.
Cease and Suarez are most certainly gone in separate deals if
Preller’s full plan is implemented.
LF Kwan is on the list
Could easily see a catcher going to San Diego also.
1B/DH is also a position to watch
(Marcel Ozuna?!).
If Red Sox price comes down to more reasonable level, then he could be in play for the Padres also
I am going to venture a guess that neither Kwan nor Duran were ever on Preller’s radar. #1 because he said the Padres were looking for RH power bats and #2 because Kwan and Duran were included in rumors. Rarely does anyone know what Preller is doing until after the fact. This trade today is exhibit #1. There were absolutely no rumors that Preller was even considering Miller. Now he is a Padre.
In my above posts I was fairly down on Sears, but doing a deeper dive I’m feeling more positive about his impact. He doesn’t have Bergert’s stuff, nor Kolek’s perhaps, but he’s likely going to slot in ahead of them based upon his experience. Vasquez is one of the more peculiar cases…he excels at nothing really, but somehow manages to escape RISP via lineouts and DPs like nobody’s business. None of these guys starts a game in the playoffs (Pivetta, Yu or King are injured and Cease is traded) but the depth is excellent. And that Sears can go back and forth to minors for two more years is a flexibility the Pads will utilize. .
Preller’s prospect cupboard is absolutely bare. He has Suarez and Cease to offer up.
He wants one of Joe Ryan, Alicantra, Edward Cabrera. unfortunately, for him, the Twins and Marlins have no interest in anything but prospects and good ones for those three.
He’s gonna need the help of a creative third like Friedman to pull off a three-way trade and there’s no way Friedman will do business with Preller or vice vera.
Cubs make the most sense to me in a straight two team deal.
The Padres still have some notable prospects in Haynes, Cruz, and Mayfield, plus some starter options at the ML level in Bergert and Kolek. I haven’t heard the Padres are linked to a starter other than Alcantara. But yes, overall, a lean farm.
Neighbors, Rodriguez, Bateman, Mendez and Hightower are also decent. Not sure Jagger moves the needle much! But it’s also true that the farm is really lacking trade value now.
Sorry, Cubs make most sense as a willing partner in a threesome. However, Cubs have not shown themselves to be real adventurous. 🤔
That’s how it’s done good on the Padres aka my NL team. Meanwhile Yanks got Ahmed rosario and Austin slater.
Love his moves or hate them…Preller is the most exciting gm in pretty much any sport. This guy knows how to bust a block. Never afraid to deal prospects, yet, perpetually has prospects to deal.
he’s addicted to being the story at trade deadlines/windows. My son is a huge Padre fan and he is sick over this De Vries trade.
Huge get for the A’s. I kind of see why the Padres did it, but yeesh, does this have the potential to make them look dumb in the future.
It would be even better seeing the A’s eventually trade De Vries too
yankees = season done
I listen to both the A’s and Giants in my area. The Giants are now unlistenable. But the A’s, despite their record are super fun to listen to.
I will certainly miss Miller but relievers are replaceable. We’ll have to wait on this one until the team is in Vegas most likely.
The Giants have imploded.
Would Posey consider trading Webb for some serious prospect talent?
They seem to be shifting their thinking with the Rogers trade. Trading the home boy Webb would take some big boy balls; but they need some real position talent. My guess his he’ll try and unload Verlander to either Detroit or Houston and walk away with some flyer. Maybe try and unload Yaz, Flores?
He’s in a very tough position as a first year GM, especially after acquiring Devers
Woah, leo? A’s did very well here
the NL playoff picture has some LOCKDOWN bullpens. Orgs have seen how mediocre the Dodgers lineup has looked and they’re smelling blood in the water… at this point: Pads, Mets, Cubs, Phils all look better. Giants too? Maybe even the Brewers??? A lot has to go right for the LADs in terms of health. Nevermind the next few hours til deadline.
Thank you for this very detailed write-up, Steve!
Wow bold move by the Padres. A smart move too being in the thick of it. Solid lineup just even got better
Oooooouuuucchhh! LDV?!?!?
A’s need to find a taker for Severino now. Wouldn’t mind him on the Mets for say, Miguel Vargas and Ronaldo Hernandez, with Mets obviously having to take the remaining money for the light return
Great trade for SD, not so good for the A’s.
SD is losing Cease and King at the end of the season, so Sears fills some of that void. Suarez is expected to take his opt-out at the end of the season, so Miller can replace either Suarez or one of the departing SP. If they now trade Cease and Suarez to fill positions that need upgrading, then this is a brilliant move!
The A’s on the other hand got three lottery tickets in the three pitchers, and DeVries. IF DeVries pans out, he’s currently blocked at SS by Jacob Wilson. The A’s would have been better off keeping Miller! The A’s have some exciting young players already, and trading Miller was a huge mistake.
Hindsight 5 years from now is 20/20. Good thing articles like these stay up. So many A’s trades for prospects had people clamoring that they somehow “won a haul/I like this haul” only for the prospects to fizzle out or get traded a year or two before being promoted.
And it’s not like De Vries, even if he ends up being a great player, is going to make a complete difference, he’s going to end up being “expensive” and will be traded yet again after spending 4-5 years with the A’s and their owner.
Would that same package have netted James Wood back?
Preller is seriously employing the bruce lee philosophy :
be water, my friends
Question , does Preller get annual kickbacks from mlb tr for driving interest in the site ??
Lol, I was thinking this morning that the staff must have a love-hate relationship with Preller.
A+ for A’s. As good as it gets for a closer.
Nunez electric reliever only. If they can improve control he will be a shutdown reliever. Even without control he will strike out a lot righty bats.
Baez looks like a backend starter. Probably better as as a reliever so has that for a floor.
Nett best starter odds for sure. Just as long as he can keep walks down he could start and be mid rotation. Also has a great floor as reliever.
De Vries big prize. Unless huge growth spurt should stick at SS. Will he just play there or be good I dunno but lean to just play there. 3b 2b would be fine because of his bat. Still needs a lot of work but I like the potential. More potential than sure thing. Why he was traded for closer and not starter.
C for SS. They paid the expensive what it takes price. I like that all the pitchers have reliever risk control issues. Even De Vries isn’t a sure stud. They traded risk for no doubt elite closer. If they can make him a starter well this becomes A+++++++++
Is there a good comp for what De Vries is projected to be?
I’ve read jose ramirez possibly. But at 18 who knows. He’s basically college senior age at high A ball. He’s 4 months older than Ethan Holliday and 4 months younger than Billy Carlson, both top 10 picks in 2025 draft
I gotta say, if you have the number 3 prospect in all of baseball, you should either be keeping that guy and trying to make him a part of your future, or trading him for a legit star. I don’t think any relievers fit that bill, and definitely not a guy with a 3.76 ERA. Overall, I would say the A’s won the deal, and that in 5 years, they will be extremely happy with what they got.
As John Fisher shows he has no intention of bringing a competitive ball club to Las Vegas.
Not sure how trading a reliever and a #5 starter for Leo de Vries shows that but go off king!
Padres r great lmao, have unloaded trea turner, classe, max fried, josh naylor, cj abrams, gore , david bedard, james wood, the kid now who is tge third best prospect, should i stop now cause theres plenty more lmao and zero ws appearances. Its hilarious how stupid they r when they make movea just to make the playoffs and theyre not contenders. Go online and read the whole list to all u baseball heads its alarming how they kill the farm to settle for barely above average
Bednar i meant, eflin, renfroe and river ryan as well, man their gm prob never believed in condoms either and i can respect his risky self 😂