Padres Active, But Refuse To Include Star Prospect In Trade Talks: Report

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jul 22, 2024

Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

After beating the American League Central-leading Cleveland Guardians in consecutive games over the weekend, the San Diego Padres are 52-50.

That leaves them in a virtual tie with the Arizona Diamondbacks and New York Mets for the final National League Wild Card spot.

Optimistically, that has the Padres on pace to reach their goal of playing in October. But their margin for error is anything but comfortable.

The looming question for the club has to do with general manager A.J. Preller and whether he will be able to upgrade the team's roster before the July 30 trade deadline.

With limited depth left in the farm system, the Padres will be challenged to obtain clear major-league upgrades. However, "they are aggressively looking for help but are telling teams that prized catching prospect Ethan Salas is untouchable," per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

San Diego has reportedly been looking to trade Gold Glove shortstop Ha-Seong Kim but those rumors have quieted down since the season got underway. With only a few teams actually being in a position to sell, is trading their starting shortstop worth it?

Probably not. Sure, the Padres have a couple of injuries that might affect a few games but getting Gold Glove right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. and starting pitcher Joe Musgrove back in the next month or so is better than any other deal available for this club right now.

Salas, 18, is catching for the advanced Class-A Fort Wayne TinCaps. Although he's struggling to hit (.195/.295/.275 in 71 games), he's playing against players an average of four years older. Struggles are to be expected — not just for Salas, but for most his age in the Midwest League.

The defensive part of Salas' game has impressed the Padres so much, San Diego's player development staff will likely be patient with him as he works to acclimate at the plate.