The San Diego Padres were one of the busiest teams ahead of MLB’s July 31 trade deadline, trading for the likes of Mason Miller, Ramon Laureano, Ryan O’Hearn and Freddy Fermin, among other players.
The Padres predominantly traded away minor-league prospects, but they also showed interest in potentially offloading one of their major-league ready players in starting pitcher Dylan Cease. A deal involving Cease nearly came to fruition — league insider and New York Post columnist Jon Heyman reported that the Houston Astros were close to acquiring him — but the Padres’ demands for a return package were not met.
For that reason, Cease will spend the rest of the final year of his current contract in San Diego, with the possibility of exploring free agency this winter.
Cease seen as strong fit for three MLB teams, including one in the NL West
MLB Network insider Mark Feinsand recently ranked the 10 players most likely to influence the free agent market during the upcoming offseason. He placed Cease ninth, behind six position players (Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, Kyle Schwarber, Bo Bichette, Pete Alonso and Cody Bellinger) and two pitchers (Framber Valdez and Michael King).
Feinsand believes the San Francisco Giants — one of the Padres’ divisional rivals — are among the teams (along with the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays) with whom Cease fits the strongest.
“Cease has struggled with consistency this season, posting a 5-11 record and 4.61 ERA in 25 starts. His velocity, whiff percentage and strikeout percentage all remain near the top of the league rankings, though walks and a lack of ground balls have hurt him at times,” Feinsand wrote. “Cease remains one of the most durable starters in the game — he’s on track for his fifth straight season with at least 32 starts — and will surely draw interest from a number of pitching-needy clubs.”
Originally a sixth-round (No. 169 overall) selection in the 2016 MLB Draft by the Chicago Cubs, Cease has put together a seven-year career in the big leagues with the Chicago White Sox and the Padres. Across 183 starts, he has tallied a 63-57 record, 3.90 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 1,199 strikeouts in 989.1 innings of work.
He also threw the second no-hitter in Padres franchise history on July 25, 2024.
