Padres Acquire Nestor Cortes
The Padres and Brewers have agreed to a trade that will send left-hander Nestor Cortes, shortstop prospect Jorge Quintana, and cash considerations to San Diego in exchange for Brandon Lockridge. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that the Padres will only owe Cortes the prorated MLB minimum salary over the remainder of the season, as the Brewers will be covering the remainder of the approximately $2.4MM owed to Cortes.
Cortes is on the move again after being dealt from the Yankees to the Brewers in December, and the southpaw’s Milwaukee tenure ends with just two starts in a Brew Crew uniform. Cortes had a 9.00 ERA over his eight innings in 2025 before a left elbow flexor strain sidelined him for the bulk of the season.
With his rehab assignment nearing an end, the Brewers had to make a decision about activating Cortes or perhaps dealing him elsewhere, given the club’s crowded pitching situation. The result was a trade to San Diego, as Cortes will now provide some depth to a rotation that was thinned when Ryan Bergert and and Stephen Kolek were dealt to the Royals earlier today in the Freddy Fermin trade.
However, the Padres didn’t move Dylan Cease despite multiple rumors and acquired JP Sears as part of the Mason Miller blockbuster, leaving the club’s rotation as Cease, Sears, Yu Darvish, Nick Pivetta, and Randy Vasquez. Cortes and the injured Michael King should likely supplant Vasquez and Sears when they return from the IL, but the bottom line is that the Padres’ plethora of deadline moves has seen the team shuffle but not really overhaul its core rotation mix.
“Nasty Nestor” emerged as a relief weapon and then as a starter with the Yankees during the 2021 season, then seemed to fully break with a tremendous 2022 campaign that saw finish eighth in AL Cy Young Award voting. Injuries unfortunately limited him to 63 1/3 frames in 2023, and he bounced back to toss 174 1/3 frames in the regular season before a late-season flexor strain surfaced.
Since Opening Day 2024, Cortes had a 4.09 ERA over 237 2/3 innings and good enough secondary numbers to make him still a solid rotation option, but New York opted to deal from a crowded rotation and sent Cortes and Caleb Durbin to Milwaukee for Devin Williams. Cortes is earning $7.6MM in his final year of arbitration eligibility, and he doesn’t have a ton of time left in the season to re-establish some value heading into free agency.
Since the Brewers will end up eating pretty much all of Cortes’ salary, the Williams trade hasn’t worked out to date, yet the deal will ultimately be judged down the road depending on how Durbin and now Lockridge or Quintana develop as big leaguers. Lockridge has seen some time in the majors already, though with only a .210/.248/.280 slash line to show for 59 games and 107 plate appearances over the 2024-25 seasons. He is 10-for-11 on stolen base attempts in the bigs, and he topped the 40-steal plateau in both the 2023 and 2024 minor league seasons.
Capable of playing all three outfield positions, Lockridge is an average-to-capable defender all over the grass. His Triple-A numbers have perhaps been inflated by the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League over the last two years, but Lockridge has a .299/.398/.396 slash over 712 career PA with the Padres’ and Yankees’ Triple-A affiliates. The Brewers seem likely to give Lockridge a look in the majors right away, as Jackson Chourio‘s hamstring injury is probably going to result in a stint on the injured list.
Quintana is an 18-year-old lottery ticket of a prospect who was a member of Milwaukee’s 2024 international signing class. He has hit .257/.355/.392 over 467 career plate appearances, all at the Rookie League levels.
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal was the first to report on the Cortes deal, while the New York Post’s Joel Sherman reported that Lockridge was heading to Milwaukee in the return and Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported Quintana’s involvement.
Padres Designate Martin Maldonado, Trenton Brooks
The Padres have designated catcher Martín Maldonado and infielder Trenton Brooks for assignment, per an announcement from the team. San Diego also optioned newly acquired infielder Will Wagner to Triple-A El Paso. Among the numerous trades the Padres pulled off before the deadline were a deal for catcher Freddy Fermin (link) and one for first baseman/DH Ryan O’Hearn and outfielder Ramón Laureano (link). That influx of position player talent to the roster meant cuts were unavoidable, and Maldonado and Brooks were (two of) the odd men out.
Maldonado’s reputation as a strong game-caller has kept him employed long after most statistics suggested he should hang up his gear. From 2012-20, he caught more than 700 games and produced 13.2 FanGraphs WAR, the 14th most among primary catchers. While his bat was a liability, his glove was valuable enough to compensate. According to FanGraphs, only five players racked up more defensive value than Maldonado in that span: Yasmani Grandal, Buster Posey, Yadier Molina, Andrelton Simmons, and Russell Martin. Yet, Maldonado’s offense has only gotten worse, and his defense has dropped off too – at least according to stats like Defensive Runs Saved (DRS), Fielding Run Value (FRV), and Deserved Runs Prevented (DRP). Over the past five seasons, no player who has taken as many or more plate appearances has a lower OPS or wRC+, and without Gold Glove-caliber defense to make up for his feeble bat, he ranks among the league’s 10 worst players in fWAR since 2021. With the Padres seeking every possible edge as they look to hold onto their postseason position, it’s no surprise they wanted to improve behind the dish. Fermin isn’t a star, but he’s an upgrade in almost every quantifiable way.
Maldonado will most likely clear waivers, reject an outright assignment, and return to the open market as a free agent. On the one hand, it might seem unlikely that he’ll find another major league job, especially with his 39th birthday fast approaching. On the other hand, one could have said the same thing before he signed with the White Sox in 2024 and the Padres this season. Perhaps it would be foolish to count out Maldonado just yet.
Brooks spent time in the minors with the Guardians and Athletics organizations from 2016-23 before he finally made his MLB debut with the Giants in May of 2024. The lefty batter went 3-for-25 over 12 games, playing first base and DH, before he was DFA’d in June. He spent the rest of the season with San Francisco’s Triple-A affiliate, where he hit well; he finished the minor league season with a .302 batting average and a 132 wRC+ in 94 games. Brooks then inked a minor league pact with the Padres and continued mashing Triple-A pitching in the early part of 2025. He batted .311 with a 133 wRC+ in 60 games before he had his contract selected in mid-June. Unfortunately, he did not have anywhere close to the same kind of success at the MLB level, as he hit .146 with a 26 wRC+ in 25 contests. If Maldonado’s DFA was unsurprising, Brooks’s may well have been inevitable.
Now 30 years old, and with a .136/.208/.212 career slash line to show for his two brief stints in the majors, Brooks is hardly a prospect. Still, his impressive numbers at Triple-A over the past two years (.306/.410/.508, 24 HR, 38 2B, 104 BB, 104 K) might convince a team in need of some left-handed depth to claim him off waivers in the coming days.
No Dylan Cease Trade Between Astros, Padres
5:06pm: Houston did not get a Cease deal done, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic.
3:49pm: The Astros’ monster deadline may not be finished. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that Houston is “working hard” to try to land Dylan Cease. Jon Heyman of The New York Post writes that talks between the clubs are “progressing” and suggests the Astros could try to get a reliever in the deal as well. There’s no suggestion an agreement has been reached nor that a trade is inevitable, but Houston certainly appears to be trying to get another massive deal over the finish line.
Cease remains one of the biggest wild cards of deadline season. San Diego is trying to balance things financially while taking a few massive swings of their own today. They’ve already added Mason Miller, JP Sears, Ryan O’Hearn, Ramón Laureano, Freddy Fermin and Will Wagner. That takes care of their biggest needs — left field, DH, catcher, backup infielder — but hasn’t halted talks on Cease. He’s owed $13.75MM in his final arbitration season.
White Sox Won’t Be Trading Luis Robert Jr.
4:58PM: The Sox will indeed be keeping Robert beyond the deadline, Feinsand writes.
2:08PM: The White Sox haven’t found an offer to their liking for center fielder Luis Robert Jr. and are increasingly likely to hold onto the outfielder rather than move him before this afternoon’s deadline, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez hears similarly.
If the Sox hold onto Robert, they’d likely be doing so with an eye toward picking up his $20MM club option for the 2026 season. It’s a risky gamble, given Robert’s lengthy injury history and the lack of production he showed throughout the entire 2024 season and the first two-plus months of the 2025 campaign.
Robert has performed considerably better of late, slashing .278/.361/.472 (130 wRC+) over his past 123 plate appearances dating back to early June. The ChiSox sat him for three straight days in early June as part of an effort to get Robert refocused on his mechanics, and whether due to that brief reset or pure happenstance, he indeed looks much like the peak version of himself.
It’s still a small sample of plate appearances, however, and Robert has frequently missed time due to injury in the past. There’s been interest in the talented 27-year-old, but not to the point where teams have been willing to offer up the sort of prospect(s) the Sox deem sufficient. A healthy two-month finish to the season for Robert could both boost his trade value in a more meaningful way and make that $20MM club option (a net $18MM decision, considering the $2MM buyout) look more palatable.
At the same time, the White Sox run the risk of encountering a scenario where Robert again falls to an injury or sees his recent production at the plate erode. Under either circumstance, exercising that $20MM option wouldn’t be all that enticing. Chicago’s payroll is quite clean, however, and even if his option were declined Robert would surely receive a big league contract as a rebound candidate. The Sox, it seems, are willing to run the risk of overpaying for his 2026 season by several million dollars in hopes that he can boost his value down the stretch or in the early portion of the 2026 campaign.
The Phillies, one of the teams that had been pursuing Robert, acquired Harrison Bader from the Twins earlier today. Other clubs that have been tied to Robert include the Padres, Reds and Mets. SNY’s Andy Martino reported recently, however, that talks with the Mets had stalled as of late last night.
Padres Acquire Will Wagner
The Padres announced that they have acquired infielder Will Wagner from the Blue Jays for minor league catcher Brandon Valenzuela.
Wagner made his MLB debut last season, and impressed by hitting .305/.337/.451 over his first 86 plate appearances in the Show. The offense hasn’t been there this year, as Wagner has batted only .237/.336/.298 in 132 PA while playing mostly third and first base in part-time duty.
Wagner was primarily a second baseman in 2024 and throughout his minor league career, so he brings some multi-positional versatility to San Diego’s infield. He is a left-handed hitter, adding to a bevy of lefty-swinging bats on the Padres’ current roster, but naturally there’s plenty in flux on what has been a very busy deadline day in San Diego. It is very easy to imagine more moves taking place to further shake up the Friars’ 26-man roster, but Wagner also has three minor league options remaining, so the Padres could easily move him to Triple-A as depth.
Toronto’s infield situation was crowded enough that Wagner was something of a spare part. With Daulton Varsho expected back from the injured list soon, Addison Barger or Davis Schneider could get more time in the infield. Moving Wagner also opens up a 40-man roster spot for the Blue Jays, which could be a hint at more moves to come today.
The 24-year-old Valenzuela is in his seventh year of pro ball, and he has hit .229/.313/.387 over 374 PA with Double-A San Antonio this season. This is his third straight season of Double-A action, as a 27-game stint in Triple-A last year saw Valenzuela struggle at the plate, and it was enough to convince the Padres to bump him down a level for more seasoning. MLB Pipeline ranked Valenzuela as San Diego’s 26th-best minor league, noting that his hitting is his biggest question mark but his overall defense is very strong.
Padres Leaning Towards Holding Robert Suarez
The Padres just landed a superstar reliever in the biggest move of deadline season. Mason Miller’s presence theoretically gives the Padres more freedom to trade incumbent closer Robert Suarez in the next three hours. That doesn’t appear to be the team’s plan, though.
Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune and Dennis Lin of The Athletic each wrote this afternoon that the Friars were leaning towards holding Suarez. Both reports note that they’re still entertaining a trade of impending free agent starter Dylan Cease. Suarez is likely to hit free agency this winter as well. He’s expected to opt out of the remaining two years and $16MM on his contract. Cease is a pure rental who is making $13.75MM.
Suarez’s opt-out makes him a more complicated trade candidate. Other teams could have trepidation about the possibility of a late-season injury that causes him to bypass the out chance. That’s something they’d want to price into the prospect return they’re offering San Diego. It could explain why the Padres don’t appear to have found much traction on a return they consider compelling. Instead, they seem inclined to stick with a monster bullpen including Miller, Suarez, Jeremiah Estrada, Jason Adam and Adrian Morejon to shorten games for what they hope will be a deep playoff run.
The focus now appears to be on an outfielder. San Diego has reportedly addressed their catching need by landing Freddy Fermin from Kansas City for back-end starters Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek. They still need to add a left fielder; Acee writes that acquiring a right-hand hitting outfielder would be ideal.
Royals Trade Freddy Fermin To Padres For Ryan Bergert, Stephen Kolek
The Padres are acquiring catcher Freddy Fermin from the Royals, according to a report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Right-handers Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek are headed to Kansas City in exchange for Fermin. The clubs have since announced the deal.
Fermin, 30, heads to San Diego after parts of four seasons with the Royals. After a three-game cup of coffee in 2022, Fermin debuted in a more substantial way the following year when he appeared in 70 games as a complement to Salvador Perez behind the plate. Fermin did quite well for himself in that rookie campaign, as he slashed .281/.321/.461 with a 108 wRC+ with strong grades for his defense behind the plate. It was enough to earn him a larger role with the club, and he began to take more starts behind the dish while Perez increasingly spent his time at DH or first base.
Fermin went on to appear in 111 games last year and put together a solid enough season. While his offense took a step back amid increased playing time, he still managed a wRC+ of 92 and earned strong marks for his blocking and throwing arm behind the plate. Things have taken a turn for the worse this year, however. Fermin has been lackluster at the dish with a .255/.309/.339 (78 wRC+) slash line, and his defensive metrics have taken a step back as well. He’s been worth just 0.4 fWAR in 67 games, but even that somewhat meager performance outpaces the Padres’ current catching tandem. Elias Diaz (67 wRC+) and Martin Maldonado (62 wRC+) have both been even less impressive than Fermin behind the plate this year, and Maldonado in particular has paired that weak offense with some of the worst catcher defense in the entire sport despite his reputation as an elite game caller.
Getting an upgrade on both at and behind the plate who comes with four years of team control was evidently worth paying a significant price for the Padres. In exchange for surrendering Fermin, the Royals have brought in two young starters who have already broken into the big leagues in Bergert and Kolek. Bergert is the prize of the duo, still in his rookie season with a 2.78 ERA in 35 2/3 innings of work spread between seven starts and four relief outings. His peripherals are a bit less encouraging, as his 22.8% strikeout rate is somewhat outweighed by an elevated 12.1% walk rate, but he remains a controllable arm capable of pitching both out of the rotation or in relief as needed.
As for Kolek, the right-hander made his big league debut with the Padres as a reliever last year. He struggled to a 5.21 ERA in 46 2/3 innings of work but posted strong underlying metrics with a 55.9% ground ball rate, a 3.57 FIP, and a 3.41 SIERA. That was enough to convince the Padres to move him into a rotation role for this year, and so far he’s made 14 starts for San Diego with roughly league average results. In 79 2/3 innings of work, Kolek has pitched to a 4.18 ERA with a 4.23 FIP. While he’s struck out just 16.7% of his opponents against a 7.7% walk rate, his 50.6% ground ball rate is still impressive and has allowed him to miss barrels throughout his time in the majors.
With both Bergert and Kolek under team control for the next half-decade, that should give the Royals plenty of flexibility at the back of their rotation both for the short-term (with Kris Bubic, Cole Ragans, and Michael Lorenzen all on the injured list) as well as the long-term, as players like Bubic and Lorenzen reach free agency while Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha get older. While losing Fermin from the club’s catching situation will hurt in the short term, a combination of Perez and Luke Maile is still on the roster while top catching prospects Carter Jensen, Blake Mitchell, and Ramon Ramirez all remain in the minor leagues to help shore up the club’s catching situation in the coming seasons.
Kotsay: Mason Miller “Unavailable Tonight,” Not Injured
Athletics closer Mason Miller was “unavailable tonight,” according to manager Mark Kotsay, who also said the decision was not injury-related. The A’s held a 5-3 lead over the Mariners entering the ninth inning at Sutter Health Park tonight and elected to stick with rookie Jack Perkins rather than go to the flamethrowing closer Miller, who hasn’t pitched since Saturday. The heavy implication is that a trade may be in the works for Miller, who is known to be of interest to the Padres and Yankees among others.
The Mets and Phillies were linked to Miller earlier today. The Phillies have since acquired Jhoan Duran from the Twins, while the Mets subsequently added Tyler Rogers and Ryan Helsley (plus Gregory Soto five days ago). The list of potential suitors for Miller is likely extensive, though the young talent required to get him will be significant.
Miller, 27 in August, is under team control through 2029. He’s also one of the game’s best relievers. Miller’s 39.1 K% ranks second among all relievers, as does his average fastball velocity of 101.2. Some might say Miller has slipped a bit from last year’s breakout All-Star performance, but his 3.76 ERA in a 38 1/3 inning sample will hardly deter interested GMs. Miller’s walk rate has worsened, and he’s been barreled up a good amount this year, but he’s still an impact stopper who’s under control for four-plus years.
In Tim Dierkes’ mailbag last week, he attempted to find comps for a reliever of Miller’s caliber being traded. Tim concluded, “Even going back a decade to identify those comps, there’s not a great match for Miller, trading one of the game’s best relievers at the deadline with four-plus years of control remaining. Unless the waters are muddied with, say, Luis Severino’s contract, I’d expect two very good 55/60 grade prospects, and perhaps an equivalent player with MLB experience, to be required.”
As J.J. Cooper of Baseball America outlined yesterday, typically about three top-100 prospects are traded at the deadline each year. We’ve seen one thus far, with #50 Eduardo Tait heading to Minnesota to headline the Duran deal. Mick Abel, the secondary piece in that trade, “very much is on the very cusp of the Top 100” according to Cooper. Keep in mind that Duran is under team control for two-plus years, while Miller is under control for four-plus. Miller’s arbitration salaries will only begin next year.
We haven’t seen a top-25 prospect traded since the Padres included a pair in the 2022 Juan Soto deal. I’d have to think Miller would require at least one such player, such as Zyhir Hope, Josue De Paula, or Dalton Rushing of the Dodgers or George Lombard Jr. of the Yankees. It’s been eight years since a team parted with a top ten prospect at the deadline; Padres President of Baseball Operations & General Manager A.J. Preller holds one such chip in #5-ranked Leo De Vries. It’s also possible that contenders could win the bidding by including valuable players off the big league roster. The Padres have one of those in play in rental starter Dylan Cease; it might require a third team and a lot of creativity (and more players) to spin him into Miller. We’ll find out in less than 17 hours.
A potential Miller trade would take place in a time of uncertainty for the Athletics, who are playing in a minor league ballpark in Sacramento in the first of what is meant to be three seasons. A’s owner John Fisher held a symbolic groundbreaking for his new Las Vegas stadium back in June, though it’s still unclear how that will be financed.
Padres, Twins Among Teams Interested In J.C. Escarra
Reports earlier in July indicated that J.C. Escarra was drawing trade interest, and Francys Romero writes that the Padres and Twins are two of the clubs most recently asking about the Yankees catcher. Escarra was optioned to Triple-A just today, leaving Austin Wells and Ben Rice as the catching options on New York’s active roster, and underlining the team’s depth at the position.
Escarra earned his first taste of MLB playing time by making the team out of Spring Training, and acting as Wells’ primary backup while Rice has seen more time at DH and first base than behind the plate. The backstop’s chief calling card has been his outstanding framing ability, even if his blocking and caught-stealing numbers leave much to be desired.
Escarra’s first 97 career plate appearances in the Show have seen him hit .205/.299/.337, with a .217 BABIP that is perhaps obscuring some better production. Though Escarra isn’t making much hard contact, he is making a lot of contact period, as he has almost as many walks (11) as strikeouts (14). His hitting record beyond the majors is inconsistent, but Escarrra hit well at the Triple-A level in 2024, and he got himself on the Yankees’ radar after crushing the ball in 2022-23 during stints in the independent leagues and in the Mexican League.
Given this journeyman background, Escarra is basically found money for the Yankees, so he may be expendable given the team’s other available catchers at both the MLB and minor league levels. Wells, Rice, and Escarra are the only catchers with any big league experience in the organization, though another veteran could be signed to a minors contract to provide some depth if Escarra did get moved.
The appeal is obvious for the Padres, whose cumulative -0.7 bWAR from the catching position is the lowest in the majors. With Elias Diaz and Martin Maldonado providing almost nothing, the Padres would have little to lose in seeing what Escarra can do with some regular playing time. San Diego has one of the lowest strikeout rates of any team in baseball, so Escarra’s high-contact ways are a fit with the Padres’ approach.
Diaz and Maldonado are both free agents after the season. The Twins have Ryan Jeffers arbitration-controlled through 2026 but Christian Vazquez is an impending free agent. Like with San Diego, Minnesota’s catching position has also been a weak link, with Jeffers, Vazquez, and (for one game) Mickey Gasper combining for 0.3 bWAR.
At age 30, Escarra may not exactly be a long-term prospect, but he is controllable through the 2030 season. Either the Padres or Twins could see the catcher as a fairly inexpensive upgrade to their needs behind the plate both this year and in the future. The Twins are in seller mode, and such players as Willi Castro, Harrison Bader, Griffin Jax, and Danny Coulombe have been linked to New York in recent rumors. It isn’t known if these Minnesota players could still be on the radar or not, as the Yankees’ acquisitions of Amed Rosario and Austin Slater specifically might’ve made Castro or Bader redundant.
Astros Interested In Sandy Alcantara
The Astros and Marlins are discussing a trade that would send Sandy Alcantara to Houston, according to reporter Michael Schwab. “Both sides are serious and interested,” as per Schwab, but there isn’t any indication that a deal is close to happening. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale regards Houston’s interest in Alcantara as a bit of a pivot, as talks with the Padres about Dylan Cease “have cooled.”
Alcantara missed the 2024 season due to Tommy John surgery, and his return to action this year has been mixed at best. The right-hander has a 6.36 ERA over 109 innings, with lot of hard contact allowed and a 16.8% strikeout rate that would represent a career low. There have been a few flashes of vintage Alcantara, and his last two starts have seen the former NL Cy Young Award winner toss 12 innings with only a single unearned run allowed. Alcantara’s fastball is still averaging 97.5mph, which is down from the 98mph he averaged during the 2021-23 seasons, yet that isn’t an egregious drop considering the righty’s long layoff.
As perhaps the top premium trade chip the Marlins have left after their latest fire sale, Alcantara’s shaky performance represents a challenge for the front office. The Fish could simply wait until the offseason to try and re-visit trade talks, perhaps after Alcantara has posted better numbers in the final two months to boost his value. Or, the Marlins could trade Alcantara before tomorrow’s deadline if a rival team comes close to matching (or even matches) what was surely a high initial asking price for the hurler’s services.
Despite Alcantara’s struggles, the Mets, Cubs, Red Sox, and Padres remained linked to his trade market. San Diego’s interest is related to the Cease talks, as the speculation has been that the Padres could both deal Cease (an impending free agent) to address multiple roster needs, while then adding another starting pitcher either as part of the return for Cease for in another deal altogether.
Cease was reportedly the Astros’ top deadline target, so this turn towards Alcantara could represent a number of things. It could be simply due diligence on Houston’s part, or a sign that the talks with San Diego are going nowhere because the Padres wish to retain Cease, or perhaps a sign that the Padres are more motivated to send Cease elsewhere.
Whereas Cease is a rental, Alcantara is controlled through the 2027 season. He is owed the remainder of his $17MM salary for 2025, $17MM more in 2026, and Miami has a $21MM club option for 2027 that contains a $2MM buyout. Adding Alcantara over Cease would be a whole new financial ballgame for the Astros, who made an effort to stay under the luxury tax threshold this past winter.
With the Mariners and Rangers charging hard in the AL West race, Astros owner Jim Crane may be willing to pay into the tax again in order to give his team some much-needed reinforcements. If the pre-TJ version of Alcantara emerges, his salary suddenly looks like a relative bargain for a frontline pitcher. Framber Valdez is also a free agent after the season, so the Astros could view Alcantara as a longer-term replacement if Valdez walks.