Quote from Randy Manese on December 14, 2025, 10:03 am

Robert had one very good full year (2023) but the rest of his career has been unremarkable.  However, he will play most of the 2026 season at age 28, so if you believe he can regain those skills he has once shown (he did finish strong in 2025), a team may want to gamble on him.

His contract is for 20 million in both 2026 and 2027 with a club option in 2027 and a buyout of only 2 million.  Considering the potential lockout in 2027, that also could interest a club bringing him on.  If the Sox buys down part of his contract and/or takes on some of our bad contracts (like Matsui) I could see a Laureano swap with them.

Lots of irons in the fire - we shall see!

Quote from fenn68 on December 14, 2025, 10:27 am

With Robert, a lot of his value is due to outstanding defense (so a bit of the decision is how defense is valued).

Just looking at offense ... for the past two seasons Laureano was substantially the better offensively. Robert substantially better defensively. It is that 2023 for Robert that is the tease of his offense. Then the $20MM vs $6.5MM has to be leveled somehow.

Just not finding it easy to construct a deal that works for the Padres (ie not increasing payroll) and works for CWS (getting quality pieces now and for the future) considering METS and PITT also "interested". METS have the bigger need for a CF and a more ML ready group of prospects plus doubt money is an issue for them.

Quote from BoosterSD on December 14, 2025, 7:42 pm

Checking out the MLBTR chat tonight and they suggested a one for one trade of Severino and Crone would be good for both teams. Thoughts??

Quote from Jeremy Hill on December 15, 2025, 1:29 am

Quote from BoosterSD on December 14, 2025, 7:42 pm

Checking out the MLBTR chat tonight and they suggested a one for one trade of Severino and Crone would be good for both teams. Thoughts??

Severino is set to make 25m next year with a 22m dollar player option for 2027. You would be almost doubling the payroll commitment the next 2 seasons and risking a dead money injury hit on a guy with a long track record of health problems. He was also openly complaining about pitching in the minor league park last season. Unless the A's were including a bunch of money and/or something else to sweeten the return it would be a hard pass for me. I think there's a fair chance that Cronenworth gets moved this offseason. I would have my sights set a bit higher than a risky higher AAV contract swap.

Quote from fenn68 on December 15, 2025, 1:41 am

Quote from BoosterSD on December 14, 2025, 7:42 pm

Checking out the MLBTR chat tonight and they suggested a one for one trade of Severino and Crone would be good for both teams. Thoughts??

Could go either way on that one ... Padres do need a reliable SP.

Severino is really a "middle rotation" SP these days (ERA in low 4s) but does make his starts / innings (at least in the past two years).

A couple of hurdles in my mind:

1. Money ... While Cronenworth makes about $12MM annually for 5 years ($60MM), Severino makes $25MM in 2026 with a player option for $22MM in 2027. Can the Padres take on in 2026 the additional $13MM given the limited budget? Can they land a decent FA SP for about  $13MM and then keep Cronenworth?
2. who plays 2B ... internally the Padres have only INF Wagner and McCoy on the roster and neither is projected as a ML starter. What does it cost to get a ML caliber 2B either money wise or trade chip wise ... even if one is available. Padres are already looking for the 9th hitter / stronger bench so creating a new hole at 2B would hurt an offense that needs a boost.

I guess I would lean NO unless the straight forward deal is modified to address the money and replacement 2B.

Quote from Jeremy Hill on December 15, 2025, 10:41 am

If Cronenworth gets traded I'm guessing it won't be until after some other options come off the board. There are rumors out there about Brendan Donovan, Brandon Lowe and Ketel Marte. Cronenworth could be a fallback option for a team that misses out on one of them.

I would also imagine that if he gets traded it's part of a series of deals that also brings in his replacement. The FA market is pretty weak. Maybe if Ha-Seong Kim's market is softer than expected they could explore a reunion. Otherwise you're probably left betting on a rebound from someone like Luis Rengifo, Willi Castro or Ramon Urias. It's not the most inspiring group. They might have to line up on a deal with a team with some depth to deal like the Mets before they can commit to moving Cronenworth.

Quote from fenn68 on December 15, 2025, 1:58 pm

In the swirl of Mets - Padres speculation one name that has not been mentioned (but may just be in play for the Mets) ... Mark Vientos. He is just 26, 3B who can shift to 1B, RHH with some power, ... once a top prospect but still upside after a very good 2024 and a down 2025. Still projected to be an "average" hitter. League minimum with 4 years control.

With the Mets adding Polanco ... could be in play. One for one with the Padres giving a RP or part of a bigger package?

Quote from fenn68 on December 15, 2025, 8:39 pm

I keep underestimating what "good" FA sign for. Kim is returning to ATL for 1 year / $20MM. (PS another Boras client).

Another signing that bodes ill for the Padres ... with a limited budget ... signing multiple "good" FA appears unlikely making the trade route more critical.

Quote from Jeremy Hill on December 16, 2025, 8:43 am

Atlanta clearly wanted Kim for this season. They desperately needed a legitimate starting SS and the FA market below Kim is dismal. Kim seems to want to bet on himself and give himself the chance to cash in after a healthy season. A slightly higher than expected 1 year deal seems like a reasonable outcome given the circumstances.

As for Vientos I would take him as a complimentary piece in a package with the Mets. I think it would be harder to match up on a straight trade. The Mets would probably want major league talent in return and I don't think we would want to sacrifice any of ours to gamble on his upside.