Padres Reportedly Eye Tigers Starter in Trade to Upgrade Rotation
The San Diego Padres enter the final days before the trade deadline 6.5 games back of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West and a game ahead of the field for the second NL Wild Card berth.
That means the Padres are still looking for pitching and it means they’re casting a net wide enough to include Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Jack Flaherty, reports The Athletic.
Flaherty has emerged as one of the most talked-about veteran starters at the deadline as the Tigers enter Monday 5.5 games back of the final AL Wild Card berth.
The former St. Louis first-round pick is 7-5 with a 2.95 ERA in 18 starts this season, with 133 strikeouts and 19 walks. He’s been especially sharp of late, as he is 5-1 in his last seven starts with a 2.08 ERA.
He’s combined with Tarik Skubal to provide the Tigers with a solid 1-2 punch at the top of their rotation. But he may be worth more in a trade that could bring Detroit additional pitching depth for the future.
Flaherty is only under a one-year contract that pays him $14 million. While the Padres would inherit less than half of the base salary, they would be on the hook for bonuses Flaherty is due if he reaches his 26th, 28th and 30th starts. Those bonuses would push the overall deal to $15 million.
Last year Flaherty was part of a deadline deal. He started the season with the St. Louis Cardinals and was traded to the Baltimore Orioles at the deadline. In a sign of what the Tigers could get for Flaherty, the Orioles gave up second baseman César Prieto, left-handed pitcher Drew Rom and right-handed pitcher Zack Showalter to the Cardinals.
The 28-year-old right-hander helped the Orioles win the American League East last season. He finished last season 8-9 with a 4.99 ERA, including 148 strikeouts and 66 walks. With the O’s he went just 1-4 with a 6.75 ERA in nine games, with seven starts.
In the offseason the Orioles let him and another veteran starter, Kyle Gibson, walk in free agency. Gibson signed with St. Louis.
He also seems to have shed the durability issues that marked the earlier part of his career. While he made 29 starts in 2023, entering the season he hadn’t logged more than 30 starts since 2019, which was the best season of his career. This year Flaherty hasn’t missed a turn in the rotation due to injury.
Before joining the Orioles, he spent his entire career with the Cardinals, where he finished fifth in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2018 and fourth in NL Cy Young voting in 2019 with an 11-8 record and a 2.75 ERA.
MATT POSTINS