The San Diego Padres have been one of the best teams in baseball in recent years, boasting one of the highest MLB payrolls with a roster loaded with All-Star talent. Months out from the 2025 season, it appears San Diego is now trying to offload some of its All-Star players.
San Diego has posted a winning record in three consecutive seasons and made the playoffs in three of the last five years. They also came one game shy of reaching the National League Championship Series in 2024, which would’ve been their second NLCS appearance in three years.
- San Diego Padres payroll 2025 (FanGraphs): $210 million, fifth in MLB
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However, all of that came at a significant cost. the Padres took out a $50 million loan in September 2023 to help cover payroll and it was reported that they experienced more than $110 million in losses during the 2023 season. With things only expected to get worse in the coming years, changes are imminent.
Dylan Cease, who San Diego acquired last offseason from the Chicago White Sox, has already popped up in MLB rumors this winter as a trade candidate. Likewise, the Padres are very open to moving All-Star second baseman Xander Bogarets. However, they aren’t the only available players on the Padres roster
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ESPN‘s Jeff Passan writes that two-time All-Star infielder Jake Croneworth and All-Star second baseman Luis Arraez have both been made available for trade by Padres general manager A.J. Preller.
- Luis Arraez stats (ESPN): .314/.346/.398, .744 OPS, 41 RBI, 61 runs scored, 24 doubles
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Part of the motivation for San Diego is Preller trying to take advantage of a free-agent market that is relatively thin on infielders. However, the other motivations are reducing the Padres payroll obligations in the years to come and reloading a farm system that was slowly stripped away by trades when the team went all-in.
- Jake Croneworth stats (ESPN): .241/.324/.390, .714 OPS, 17 home runs, 83 RBI
Croneworth, 31 in January, is entering the second season of a seven-year contract that pays out $80 million total, including $12.285 million in 2030 when he is 36 years old. Arraez, who will be 28 next season, is only under contract for 2025 before becoming a free agent. Like with Cease, San Diego will try and move them to find long-term pieces who could become effective cost-controlled starters for years to come.