Padres-Yankees Trade Makes Too Much Sense Before Deadline

Major League Baseball's trade deadline is one week away, and the San Diego Padres remain without a clear direction.

After a massive sweep over the Miami Marlins, the Padres are 53-53, two games back of the final wild-card spot in the National League.

If the trade deadline was today, the Padres would likely be buyers considering the momentum from their three-game sweep and the reports that president of baseball operations AJ Preller is looking for any reason to buy.

However, the Padres still have six more games before the deadline that could ultimately make or break their season.

Fortunately, those games come against two of the worst teams in MLB. First, the Padres play two games against the 42-65 Colorado Rockies. Then, they play four games against the 44-61 San Francisco Giants leading right into the deadline.

If the Padres go even 3-3 over the next six games, Preller would almost certainly buy. If San Diego can win four or more games, expect the Padres to be as aggressive as any team over the next seven days.

With that being said if the Padres become buyers, they don't exactly have many assets to help them faciliate deals. That's a reason why Mason Miller has been mentioned in trade rumors. It's a reason why the team could ultimately trade pieces on their big league roster to help fix other holes.

It wouldn't be a surprise to see San Diego trade from their major league bullpen to potentially add a starting pitcher. If they ultimately trade Miller, it will almost certainly be for at least one player who can help them right now, and potentially more.

That's why the Padres and the New York Yankees make so much sense as trade partners, and why it wouldn't be a surprise to see a deal between the two teams over the next week.

Why Padres and Yankees are Perfect Trade Partners

The Yankees are looking for bullpen help, and have an influx of young talent that hasn't exactly panned out in the big leagues. Moreover, they have a surplus of starting pitching talent.

If the Padres ultimately decided to pull the trigger on a Miller deal, they could get one of the Yankees' top prospects — such as right-handed pitchers Elmer Rodriguez or Carlos Lagrange — as well as a major league ready starting pitcher and a bat.

If the Padres decide to hold onto Miller, they could look to trade someone like Adrian Morejon, who's one of baseball's most dominant left-handed relievers, but an expiring contract who will almost certainly be out of San Diego's price range in a couple months.

The Yankees would love Miller, but would be more than happy with someone like Morejon or potentially relievers such as right-hander Jeremiah Estrada or left-hander Yuki Matsui.

As for the Padres, they could be interested in right-handed pitcher Will Warren, who had a 3.45 ERA in mid-June before struggling as of late but would fill a huge need in the rotation. They could also potentially be interested in former top prospect outfielders Jasson Dominguez or Spencer Jones, who have the tools to be great but haven't been able to find success in New York.

The Yankees have tons of depth in the areas that San Diego is looking to upgrade. The Padres have a surplus of relief talent that could fortify the New York bullpen going into October.

In a perfect world for the Yankees, their bullpen is anchored by Mason Miller for the foreseeable future. However, even if Miller isn't moved, it would make sense for one of San Diego's relievers to be wearing Yankee pinstripes come Aug. 4.

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