Padres Blockbuster Trade Idea Sends Ethan Salas, More to Detroit for Tarik Skubal

One of the bigger questions for the San Diego Padres' front office right now is how the team should approach the upcoming trade deadline.

San Diego got off to an excellent start to the season, exceeding expectations along the way. But over the last few weeks, the Padres have come crashing down to earth, and now find themselves sitting eight games back of first place in the National League West.

The team has a real need for more offense, with them being the worst hitting teams in baseball with an OPS of .644. But there is also a concern with the starting rotation, and the Padres have been linked to potentially making some splash trades.

One of these trades would be for ace Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers, whose name has been gaining traction around the league recently. Skubal is one of the best pitchers in baseball, but he will be a free agent at the end of the season.

However, his talent level could have a team like the Padres looking to make a trade, and San Diego has been heavily viewed as a favorite to get him. In a recent trade idea by Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, the Padres would land Skubal and a bat for multiple top prospects.

Padres receive: LHP Tarik Skubal and 1B Spencer Torkelson

Tigers receive: C Ethan Salas, SP Kruz Schoolcraft, SP Bryan Balzer, RP Jeremiah Estrada

Would This Trade Package Make Sense For Padres?

If the Padres were to pull off this trade idea, the team would be sending its No. 1 and No. 2 prospects in the system (Salas and Schoolcraft) to the Tigers. This would be a major haul coming out of the Padres farm system, especially for a rental in Skubal.

Skubal would be a risk since he can leave in free agency just a few months later, but his presence in the rotation could make this team a serious World Series threat. If the Padres' offense were to ever start clicking, having an ace like Skubal could help take them over the top.

But in the end, trading their top two prospects for a rental, even with how good a player Skubal is, doesn't make a lot of sense. Skubal alone isn't good enough to carry this team, and the Padres could be in a tough spot following the year if he were to leave.

Getting Torkelson in return would help ease some damage, but he's off to a poor year at the plate this season. Overall, Torkelson has hit .212 with nine home runs and 25 runs batted in, while posting an OPS of .712.

At the same time, that OPS would make him the second-best hitter on the Padres among qualified players.

Torkelson does have two more years left of team control and put together a breakout 2025 season with 31 home runs and a .789 OPS. The former first overall pick would give the Padres more depth and potential, but he may not be enough to take them over the top.

Even with how aggressive president of baseball operations A.J. Preller has been over the years, this trade seems like too much given the current state of the team. However, we can never count out the Padres to get creative in another way, going after Skubal or another star pitcher in a different trade idea.

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