Padres Reliever Reacted To Teams' Big Deadline Trade by Talking About Video Games

What does MLB The Show have to do with the Padres' bullpen? Something!

Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

In a last-minute deal at the trade deadline, the Padres acquired two Marlin pitchers, Tanner Scott and Bryan Hoeing. The pair was traded in exchange for a quartet of Padres: right-handed pitcher Adam Mazur, second baseman Jay Beshears, left-handed pitcher Robby Snelling, and third baseman Graham Pauley.

One Padres reliever, Jeremiah Estrada, was already familiar with his new teammate before he was traded to San Diego. The 25-year-old right-hander often utilizes Scott’s abilities in an MLB video game, which suggests that Estrada will be quick to trust the Padres’ new addition to the pitching staff. 

“Oh, Tanner Scott?” Estrada said to The Athletic. “That’s the lefty I use in my bullpen in MLB The Show.”

The video game, MLB The Show, debuted in 2006. The newest edition was released in March. As of that month, Scott had a 91 overall rating on the MLB The Show, and he was the highest-rated Marlin before the trade, according to Sports Illustrated.

Scott's high rating and popularity on the video game are understandable. He was named the National League Reliever of the Month for July. Across the month, he racked up six saves and posted a clean 0.00 ERA.

The last time he logged a 0.00 ERA in July was in 2020 when he threw two strikeouts and no walks in 1.1 innings. In 9.2 innings this season, Scott threw 15 strikeouts and four walks with batters averaging .034 against him.

Scott has already made one appearance with San Diego on Saturday against the Colorado Rockies. He pitched for one inning in the Padres' 3-2 win. Scott was stuck with a 9.00 ERA with his new team after Rockies' Jacob Stallings hit a home run in the bottom of the eighth. Scott recovered and got out of the inning with two straight strikeouts.

Although the Padres will not be able to surpass the Dodgers for first place in the National League West, their recent results have put them in a good spot for the playoffs. Since the addition of Scott to the bullpen, the Padres won three of their last four games. The team won 11 of 14 games since returning from the All-Star break, which has placed them second for the National League Wild Card spot in the playoffs behind the Atlanta Braves.

It's not the most comfortable place to be as the team looks ahead to October, but it's better than the sub-.500 results the team saw most of last season, before ultimately falling a game short in the end. Now, they have an arguably more potent roster to get them across the finish line.