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

Heading into the 2026 MLB season, the San Diego Padres starting rotation has all sorts of questions surrounding it. From the team losing guys over the offseason to players dealing with lingering injuries, the pitching staff is easily the biggest concern on the roster.

San Diego will be without veteran right-hander Yu Darvish for the season due to him undergoing UCL surgery, while Joe Musgrove suffered a setback in his return from Tommy John surgery. This leaves the Padres in an uncomfortable spot, especially with the goal of the 2026 season being to win the World Series.

But the team will have to make do for right now, and the front office is expected to address the rotation problem closer to the trade deadline. Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller has been opportunistic in how he approaches trades, and we could see another blockbuster move coming down the line.

MLB insider Jim Bowden of The Athletic is predicting that the Padres will trade for a former Cy Young Award winner. This would be veteran right-hander Sandy Alcantara of the Miami Marlins, who has been on the trade block in each of the last few seasons.

Why Padres Would Go After Sandy Alcantara

If the Padres could land Alcantara in a trade, it could shore up some of the problems from the starting staff. While the right-hander has dealt with some injuries over the last few years, he still has decent-enough stuff out on the mound.

Alcantara was a hot name at the trade deadline last season, and Miami almost pulled the trigger on a deal, even with his recent struggles. Last year, Alcantara made 31 starts for the Marlins, posting an ERA of 5.36 over 174.2 innings of work.

The right-hander was able to make it through the season in 2025, which bodes well for any injury concerns from a team like San Diego. But his performance in the second half of last season was encouraging, putting up an ERA of 3.33.

Alcantara had better command after the All-Star break as he shook off the rust from a return from Tommy John surgery. The right-hander has a devastating sweeper, and if he can get that back to his All-Star form, he could do some serious damage on the mound again.

Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix is excited to see what Alcantara can do this season. Bendix even acknowledged rust from coming back from the brutal surgery as a reason for the struggles to open last season.

“He was shaking off the rust in-season. He was trying to find that final adjustment in-season. We saw in the second half of the season what it looks like when he makes that adjustment,” Bendix said. “That’s the version we are going to see going forward. His ability to refine his arsenal and potentially add to it is only going to play it up. He is in a great mental space. We are going to see the real, true, ace-level version of Sandy.”

Alcantara is under team control for this year and next, which could be perfect for the Padres. With all the questions that the team has in the rotation, getting a non-rental arm could be just what they need.

Miami held a high asking price for Alcantara last year, and if he were to get back to his Cy Young stuff, it would probably go up. But the Padres could use his services, and putting him as a No. 2 or No. 3 in this pitching staff would give the team more depth and length for the season — and a real threat come October.