Even as they face the impending departure of closer Robert Suarez in free agency, the San Diego Padres’ bullpen remains loaded.
Mason Miller, Adrian Morejon, and David Morgan represent the team’s high-leverage core, and you can throw Jason Adam in there once he returns to full health. Now that all of those players have been confirmed as relievers (despite rumblings about one or multiple converting to the rotation), the Padres should once again field one of the best relief corps in the game in 2026.
Given the holes elsewhere on the roster, it’s clear the Padres plan to ride that unit to victory next year. However, if the team feels their stash of great relievers is already complete, would they consider dealing from an area of strength to fortify another position?
That’s a possibility that MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell floated at the Winter Meetings, suggesting that Jeremiah Estrada could be the odd-man out if the Padres deal from their bullpen.
Jeremiah Estrada could yield a haul in trade, but Padres may be reluctant to deal from bullpen
Estrada has emerged as a dominant reliever with the Friars since coming over from the Chicago Cubs. He’s recorded a 3.22 ERA and 2.87 FIP in 134 innings over the past two seasons, making a team-high 77 appearances in 2025. He’s run a 36.3% strikeout rate against a 9.0% walk rate in San Diego, racking up 2.6 fWAR along the way.
As Cassavell explains: “That’s an extremely valuable trade piece. And perhaps one San Diego can afford to move. Estrada is currently the No. 4 option in the ‘pen. It seems at least reasonable that, if they’re going to make a trade, the Padres would look to deal from a position of strength.”
He isn’t on the same tier of reliever as Miller, but considering what the Padres surrendered to get the Athletics’ star with 4.5 years of team control, it isn’t a stretch to say that Estrada and his four years of control could bring a notable group of players back to San Diego.
We know A.J. Preller wants to pull off a league-shifting blockbuster this offseason but lacks the prospects to do it. Could he include Estrada as a centerpiece in such a deal to grease the wheels on a trade?
Still, it seems that the team doesn’t want to subtract from the bullpen just to improve the rest of the roster. It’s the one clear area the Padres will have an advantage in over other teams, and taking away from their biggest strength just to cover for other weaknesses may not make the team better next season.
If that proves to be the case, perhaps someone like Jake Cronenworth will be the default trade chip. But if the Padres want to make their signature offseason blockbuster, parting with Estrada may be a necessary evil.
