Former Padres Outfielder Drawing Interest From 8 Teams in Free Agency: Report
Former San Diego Padres outfielder Tommy Pham is reportedly drawing interest from several teams. According to Juan Toribio of MLB.com, at least eight teams are showing interest in the 35-year-old outfielder.
Pham most recently won a National League pennant with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He appeared in 50 games with the D-backs following a deadline day trade with the New York Mets.
Overall, Pham finished the 2023 regular season with a .256/.328/.446 slash line. He also stole 22 bases in 25 attempts. In the postseason, Pham was dazzling at times. He batted .421 (8 for 19) in the World Series with a home run, and also hit .429 (6 for 14) in Arizona's three-game NLDS sweep of the Dodgers.
Pham's next team will be his fifth since the Padres let him leave in free agency after the 2021 season. He split the 2022 season between Cincinnati and Boston before signing with the New York Mets in Jan. 2023.
The Padres acquired Pham and Jake Cronenworth from the Tampa Bay Rays in Dec. 2019 for Hunter Renfroe, Xavier Edwards and Esteban Quiroz. Last season was the first in which Pham did not receive at least 500 plate appearances since 2016.
In an interview with the New York Post's The Show with Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman, Pham said he wants to be an everyday player.
“I don’t view myself as a platoon player. I’m not comfortable going into a situation where they’re saying, ‘Hey, you’re only gonna play against lefties,'” Pham said. “I still wanna play every day.”
