Padres Notes: Blockbuster Trade Prediction, Yu Darvish’s Surprise Decision, Major Sale Update

The 2026 Major League Baseball season is officially underway as the New York Yankees took down the San Francisco Giants, 7-0, on Wednesday's Opening Night.

As the San Diego Padres prepare to start their journey to October (at Petco Park Thursday afternoon against Tarik Skubal and the Detroit Tigers), president of baseball operations A.J. Preller is almost certainly preparing to keep perfecting the roster and get the best possible product on the diamond. A blockbuster trade prediction has been made that would potentially land a former Cy Young award winner in the rotation.

In other news, veteran right-hander Yu Darvish made a somewhat surprising decision that will prove to save the Padres a significant sum of money. Although the 39-year-old won't be playing this season, retirement doesn't appear to be on the horizon, according to a social media post he made earlier this offseason.

"You may have seen an article, and although I am leaning towards voiding the contract, there’s still a lot that has to be talked over with the Padres so the finer details are yet to be decided," Darvish said in the post.

"Also I will not be announcing my retirement yet. Right now I am fully focused on my rehab for my elbow, and if I get to a point where I can throw again, I will start from scratch again to compete. If once I get to that point I feel I can’t do that, I will announce my retirement."

Additionally, the Friars placed eight players on the injured list on Wednesday, all but two from the pitching roster. Their roster is finally at the MLB-mandated 26-man level and they are ready to begin a long-awaited season, especially after 2025 ended far too quickly into the postseason.

Finally, a major update has been revealed in the upcoming sale of the team. The identity of the fourth and final bidder has been revealed as the Seidler family gets closer to finalizing a sale.

Here’s all the latest Padres news and stories (click the headline for the full article):

Padres Predicted to Land $56 Million Cy Young Winner in Blockbuster Trade

Yu Darvish Makes Major Decision to Save Padres Significant Money: Report

Mystery Bidder in Padres Sale Revealed; All 4 Groups Now Known

Padres Place 8 Players on IL, Yu Darvish Goes on Restricted List Before Opening Day

Projecting the Padres Pitching Rotation and Bullpen Before Opening Day

Padres Predicted to Sell for $3.4 Billion in Record-Breaking Move

Walker Buehler's Job Isn't Safe Despite Making Padres Opening Day Roster

Mike Shildt Gets Brutally Honest on Sudden Padres Exit

Padres Tweets of the Day