The San Diego Padres made the one trade that a lot of people were waiting for.
Starting pitcher Dylan Cease was a top target on the trade market and he is heading to the Padres in a blockbuster deal.
San Diego sent back a package of prospects to the Chicago White Sox for the 28-year-old pitcher.
We have seen the Padres be aggressive on the trade market over the past few seasons.
Padres GM A.J. Preller deserves plenty of credit for that.
According to Dennis Lin, Preller said he had a “running dialogue” with the White Sox all offseason about Cease.
A.J. Preller said he had a “running dialogue” with the White Sox about Dylan Cease from the beginning of the offseason.
— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) March 14, 2024
It was just a matter of time until Cease was moved.
The White Sox are entering a long rebuild, so they did not need a pitcher like Cease.
He has two years left on his contract and it was clear the White Sox were not going to re-sign him.
So, it was a good move by them to trade Cease now and capitalize on his value.
The Padres now enter the 2024 season with hopes of getting back to the playoffs.
Even though they traded Juan Soto, the Padres have enough to compete for a Wild Card spot.
Having to compete with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West is a tough task.
They have the best roster in baseball and are heavy favorites for the World Series.
But if the last few seasons have taught us anything, it is that Wild Card teams go far in the playoffs.
If the Padres can get in, there is no telling how far they can go.
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