Dodgers News: San Diego Padres Acquire Rumored LA Trade Target

The Padres made the first splash at the deadline by acquiring Brewers closer Josh Hader.

On Monday morning, the San Diego Padres made the first big move of the summer by acquiring Milwaukee Brewers closer Josh Hader in a deal that sent their current closer, Taylor Rogers, and a slew of prospects to Milwaukee.

ESPN's Jeff Passan was one the first to break the news of the San Diego-Hader deal. 

BREAKING: The Brewers are trading star reliever Josh Hader to the Padres, a source tells ESPN.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 1, 2022

Passan also added that the return for Hader for the Brewers was "significant".

"The return on Josh Hader to Milwaukee is significant: left-handed closer Taylor Rogers, lefty pitching prospect Robert Gasser, outfielder Esteury Ruiz and right-hander Dinelson Lamet, sources tell ESPN. Hader will be a free agent after the 2023 season."

The Dodgers are certainly in need of reliever help, but team president Andrew Friedman has said time and time again how he loathes paying for top-shelf closers at the deadline (quote via The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya). 

“I hate trading for relievers at the deadline. It’s my least favorite thing to do. The acquisition cost is totally out of whack. So I like to avoid it as much as possible.”

Considering the struggles of LA closer Craig Kimbrel, the Dodgers certainly could've used a back-end bullpen upgrade like Hader, but the price tag was clearly more than Friedman was willing to pay.

Padres GM A.J. Preller has no such qualms with shelling out quality prospects, which San Diego has plenty of, in return for All-Star players.

San Diego didn't ship out any of their top prospects in the Hader deal, and insiders believe they still have enough to swing a trade for Nationals superstar Juan Soto before the August 2nd (3PM PT) deadline .