The Padres have officially had the wheels come off of their bus. After spending a fortune to acquire names like Justin Upton, Craig Kimbrel, Wil Myers, James Shields, and Matt Kemp this offseason; they are officially sellers at this year’s deadline. With a combination of San Diego’s young core and acquired talent, they were expected to be in the playoffs. Sitting 4th in the tough NL west (tied with Arizona, who selected #1 overall in this year’s draft), the Friars are 44-49 and are looking like their usual selves. To add insult to injury; they lost their pick in this year’s draft due to free agent signings. The Padres are looking to move their big contracts, as it’s obvious they are stuck with Melvin Upton Jr. They have been in talks with the Orioles about Justin Upton, and have made James Shields and former Braves closer Craig Kimbrel available. That brings up an interesting scenario for Braves fans. If Hart was to make just ONE “buyers” move, could it be used to acquire the Braves fan favorite? Craig and his contract do not fit our rebuilding strategy, but let’s be honest, we all miss him. Here’s a scenario that could send Craig home to Atlanta. Can the Braves rob the Padres just ONE MORE TIME?
Note: I know this is wishful thinking, but a guy can dream can’t he? A lot of Braves prospects have been moved recently to acquire money for International Signings, so we are a little thin at this time.
The Atlanta Braves trade Williams Perez, Jose Peraza, Jason Hursh and Alec Grosser to the San Diego Padres for Craig Kimbrel
This was a tough trade to think of, a lot of our top prospects came from San Diego, and it would make no sense to send them all back. I gave up players that
1. Were Drafted High
2. Are Playing Well
3. Have a lot of upside.
Closers are a dime a dozen, and Craig’s rough year in San Diego WOULD NOT translate back home. We would be reversing SOME of the work done this offseason, but this scenario would give Atlanta fans the best of both worlds; getting rid of Melvin Upton Jr and keeping one of the faces of the franchise. Most of you would call this crazy (let’s be honest, I would too) but hey, I gotta find a way to keep him away from Washington.