Padres Rumors: San Diego ‘Expected’ to Trade Blake Snell, Josh Hader at Deadline, Says MLB Insider

A losing season has made keeping these stars unjustifiable.

The Padres are expected to trade former Cy Young winner Blake Snell and 2023 All-Star closer Josh Hader at the trade deadline, according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale.

Snell holds a 3.21 ERA in 16 starts this season while Hader has been lighting it up this season, with a 1.21 ERA and 18 saves. Hader was selected to his fifth All-Star Game this season and is considered one of the best relievers in the game.

The prospect of the Padres trading away two of their best pitchers, as well as some potential other stars, would have been ridiculous before the start of the 2023 season. San Diego was one of the World Series favorites given their talented — and expensive — roster.

Now, the Padres well below .500 and are far out of the NL Wild Card race. The Friars are coming off yet another disappointing road trip, and their prospects of becoming a playoff-contender are diminishing with each loss.

Trading away Snell and Hader, who are both set to become free agents after the 2023 season, could be wise for San Diego, but it would also symbolize an abandonment of a World Series title run that seemed so plausible earlier in the season.

San Diego could likely get a good return from trading their star pitchers as playoff teams would covet a solid starter in Snell and an elite reliever in Hader come the postseason.

The Padres have series against the Angels and Mets remaining before the All-Star break, during which general manager AJ Preller will have to think long and hard about what he will do before the Aug. 1 trade deadline.