The San Diego Padres are concluding an exchange to gain previous Cy Young Award champ Blake Snell from the Tampa Bay Rays for top pitching prospect Luis Patiño, catchers Francisco Mejia and Blake Hunt and right-handed pitching prospect Cole Wilcox, sources acquainted with the agreement told ESPN on Sunday.
The trade, which is pending medical reviews, would send the 28-year-old Snell to the Padres and was settled upon precisely two months to the day of Game 6 of the World Series, in which he tossed 5⅓ brilliant innings just to be pulled. Tampa Bay injury up losing the game and arrangement to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Padres’ forcefulness has put them in exchange talks the entire winter. While they were talking about expected arrangements for the Chicago Cubs’ Yu Darvish and Cincinnati Reds’ Sonny Gray, their center went to Snell, whose agreement will pay him $39 million throughout the following three years.
Tampa Bay, whose set of experiences of exchanging top pitchers incorporates managing James Shields, David Price and Chris Archer, will get a critical take as a trade-off for Snell. Patiño, 21, is the main event, a 6-foot right-hander with a fastball that sits at 97 mph and a slider considered among the best in the lower levels. In 17⅓ innings last season, he posted a 5.19 ERA, struck out 21 and strolled 14.
Mejia, 25, is an onetime top possibility who had become undesirable in San Diego however is a switch-hitter with power. Wilcox got a $3.3 million reward – a record for a third-round pick – in the wake of being removed in the current year’s draft from Georgia. Chase, 22, is the most un-known about the four yet dazzled in instructional alliance play this year and is a major catcher (6-foot-3, 215 pounds) whose swing, evaluators stated, gets an opportunity to have him climb prospect rankings rapidly.
The Athletic was first to report the players going to the Rays in the arrangement.
This imprints San Diego’s second enormous exchange for a pitcher in the previous a half year after it gained Mike Clevinger from Cleveland in August. He tossed only 19 innings for the Padres prior to requiring Tommy John medical procedure yet is relied upon to get back from the elbow injury for the 2022 season.
Indeed, even without Clevinger, the Padres gloat a solid pivot as they attempt to get the Dodgers in the National League West Division. Snell is sponsored by Dinelson Lamet, Zach Davies, Chris Paddack and an array of likely No. 5 starters, including MacKenzie Gore, viewed as the best left-gave throwing prospect in baseball.
The Rays’ revolution profundity has endured a huge shot with the Snell exchange and Atlanta marking free specialist Charlie Morton. Tampa Bay actually returns solid throwing profundity and has the best homestead framework in baseball, headed by shortstop Wander Franco, the No. 1 by and large possibility in Kiley McDaniel’s best 100.
