In a deal that has been bandied about for the last few days, it appears that former All-Star Matt Kemp is on his way from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the San Diego Padres.
CBS Sports insider Jon Heyman indicated early Thursday morning that the two sides were on the verge of completing what he called a “blockbuster trade.”
According to Heyman, the Dodgers would likely receiver young catcher Yasmani Grandal as the centerpiece of the deal. Other names potentially heading a bit further north are young pitchers Joe Ross and Zach Eflin.
The Dodgers have been looking to shed themselves of Kemp’s monstrous contract, which is set to pay him $107 million over the next five years. And while the former NL MVP candidate has seen his production slip from a 39-homer, 126-RBI season back in 2011, he still hit 25 homers and put up a solid .287 average this past year.
It remains to be seen exactly who would head to Los Angeles in this deal and how much money it would pick up, but the deal is reportedly at the final stages before completion. We will provide further updates when more concrete information becomes available.
Update (6:50 a.m et: Dennis Lin and Kirk Kenney of the Union Tribune in San Diego are reporting that the deal has been agreed to. Catcher Tim Federowicz will join Kemp in San Diego. Meanwhile, the Dodgers will acquire the aforementioned Grandal as well as pitching prospects Joe Wieland and Zach Eflin. Los Angeles will also send $30 million to the Padres in order to help cover the remainder of Kemp’s deal.
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