On Wednesday night, trade talks centering around Dylan Cease intensified.
They got so serious that they resulted in the player being dealt to the San Diego Padres in a five-player deal.
After several months of speculation, the Chicago White Sox did the logical thing and traded Cease to a contender, re-stocking their mediocre farm system in the process.
In exchange for parting with several legitimate prospects, the Padres get a quality pitcher to place near the top of their rotation.
Speaking of their pitching staff, MLB on FOX posted a graphic with the five names projected to take the ball every five days:
The Padres projected starting rotation after trading for Dylan Cease pic.twitter.com/bJ5LT47nrT
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 14, 2024
Yu Darvish, the Opening Day starter, is the ace of the staff after the departure of Blake Snell.
Joe Musgrove and Cease are a rock-solid tandem for spots number two and three.
Michael King, who came over to San Diego in the Juan Soto trade with the Yankees, is expected to be the fourth starter.
As of Thursday, Matt Waldron will be the fifth starter.
This is a pitching staff that lost a lot of personnel in the offseason: besides Snell, Seth Lugo, Nick Martinez, and Michael Wacha also departed, not to mention top reliever Josh Hader.
Still, even without those names and Soto, the front office believes they can compete, and that’s why they risked everything and went for Cease.
Cease had a mediocre 2023 with a 4.58 ERA, but he checked in at 2.20 the year before and is capable of striking out 200+ people even when he is not at his best.
He is probably not an ace, but he is a quality mid-rotation option and should thrive in San Diego.
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