It would not be an MLB Trade Deadline without AJ Preller making a crazy move. The San Diego Padres surprised the baseball world when they traded for Robbie Ray from the San Francisco Giants. The Padres will be sending Miguel Mendez and Joniel Hernandez back to the Giants. Moving Ray alone is a big deal, but the fact that he was sent to a division rival adds an extra wrinkle. But why did both teams decide to make this trade?
Breaking Down the Robbie Ray Trade
The Padres Perspective
Just a couple of weeks ago, people were making the argument that the Padres should be sellers at the deadline. They should look to move someone like Mason Miller and try to restock the farm system. To start the re-tool before the roster ages and regresses too much. But when you have Preller at the helm, the future is not something that is focused on. He is the most aggressive GM in baseball, and will not sell unless his team is officially eliminated. You can make of that what you will, but it definitely makes things fun.
Ray is having his best season since his Cy Young Award-winning season of 2021. In 122 ⅔ innings, he has a 3.08 ERA with 107 strikeouts to 57 walks, a 1.288 WHIP and an ERA+ of 129. The Padres’ starting rotation has been bit by the injury bug this season. They currently only have two healthy starters in Michael King and Walker Buehler. You can not go on any kind of runs with that little depth in your rotation. Rays will be a big help for this. He will slot in between King and Buehler, and will hopefully give the bullpen a little more rest.
The Giants Perspective
This is a move that we have seen coming for weeks. Ever since there were rumors the Giants were going to be sellers at the deadline, the first name everyone brought up is Ray. With him being in the final year of his deal and putting up very solid numbers, he was expected to have a robust market. Sure, he was never going to be the best available arm, but he is someone any contender would die to have in the middle of the rotation. You feel confident that he will give you around six innings and hold the opponent to one or two runs.
The prize of this deal for the Giants is Mendez. While he has not been great in Double-A this season, he was the fourth overall prospect in the Padres system according to MLB Pipeline. He’s a pitcher who relies on high velocity, with his fastball touching 99 mph. He also has a devastating slider. If he can fix his control problem, he should be a good reliever one day. Hernandez is a bit more of a lottery ticket. He’s 17 years old but already ranks in the 90th percentile in exit velocity. Could develop into a power-hitting outfielder.
