Padres News: Expert Explains Reasoning Behind Potential Blake Snell Trade
We are at the brinks of the end of the second month of the 2023 MLB season and the Padres are obviously not quite in the territory they thought they would be. When you look back towards the beginning of May, San Diego wasn't too far off from the Dodgers and the top of the NL West.
However, a lot has gone wrong since then. They dropped both series against the Boys in Blue this month, watched their batting average drop near the bottom of the league, and now boast a record of 25-29. Manny Machado also remains away from the clubhouse right now with his hairline fracture.
As the summer nears closer, more and more trade rumors are going to start spiraling towards the franchise if they don't make drastic improvements. Padres' expert Borna Nazari already correctly predicted that the front office would make a move for a new catcher option in Gary Sanchez after a terrible loss to the Yankees last Saturday.
And now trade rumors involving Blake Snell are starting to heat up as well.
Snell has had an interesting 2023 campaign with the Friars thus far. His 1-6 record obviously does not tell the full story as he is second on the team in strikeouts with 54 and has been one of the more reliable options outside of a few slip-ups.
But Nazari is worried that the money he will expect this coming offseason will not be ideal for the Padres to comply with.
"Do we want to shell the money for a guy like Blake Snell?," said Nazari. "Who's probably going to want six years, $180 million, $190 million. He's going to want a contract late into his 30's. Or do you prioritize helping your roster in other ways?"
"Now I'm not saying it's 100% you need to trade Blake Snell at the trade deadline, you're trying to win the World Series. But if the Padres continue to struggle at this rate, it could make sense to at least field some calls for Blake Snell."
(Via The Hog Watch)
This will definitely be something to keep an eye on!
