Inside The Padres

New Padres All-Star Has a Chance to Make MLB History

Maren Angus-Coombs

Rhona Wise-USA TODAY Sports
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The San Diego Padres put Major League Baseball on notice when they acquired Luis Arraez from the Miami Marlins on Friday night.

The 27-year-old was the Marlins' best player and was named an All-Star and the batting champion in his last two seasons. Arraez won the American League batting title in 2022 with the Minnesota Twins and then was traded to Miami in Jan. 2023, where he won the National League batting title last season.

With a .311 batting average through 35 games, the second baseman has an opportunity to make baseball history if he wins the batting crown again this season. According to Sarah Langs of MLB.com, nobody has won a batting title in three straight seasons with three different teams.

The acquisition of Arraez has excited the San Diego clubhouse. One of his new teammates compared him to Padres legend Tony Gwynn.

"It's really amazing -- that guy is a baller," Fernando Tatis Jr. said about Arraez. "He's probably the closest to Tony Gwynn right now, so looking forward to seeing him in our lineup. ... The guy's a pure hitter, and I can't wait for him to help us."

In exchange for Arraez, the Padres sent reliever Woo Suk-Go and prospects Dillon Head, Jakob Marsee, and Nathan Martorella to the Marlins. The Padres also received nearly $7.9 million in cash considerations, leaving them responsible for the major league minimum salary for Arraez.

Miami is paying San Diego $7,898,602 of the $8,491,398 remaining for the final 149 days of his $10.6 million salary. That left his cost to the Padres at $592,796 — exactly a prorated share of the $740,000 minimum.

The trade is a big blow to the Marlins but a huge pickup for the Padres. Arraez is expected to start games as the designated hitter and will see time all around the infield to give Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and Jake Cronenworth at-bats as the DH.

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Maren Angus-Coombs

MAREN ANGUS-COOMBS

Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. Despite being raised in the South, her sports obsession has always been in Los Angeles. She is currently a staff writer for the LA Sports Report Network.