The Tampa Bay Rays have several players who have been mentioned prominently on the trade market this offseason.
Despite being in desperate need of offensive upgrades, multiple positional players are thought to be available. One of those players is designated hitter Yandy Diaz.
His name has been on the trade block for what feels like years. At this point, it is a bit surprising that he has remained with the Rays, but they have yet to find a deal that they liked. Things seemed to get close ahead of the trade deadline this past summer, with the New York Mets inquiring.
This winter, expect rumors to swirl around him again. While the odds of him being dealt have been predicted to be rather low, that doesn’t mean teams won’t come calling to check in on his availability.
Padres named fit for Yandy Diaz
Who could come calling to make a deal for Diaz? One team to keep an eye on, in the opinion of MLB insider Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, is the San Diego Padres.
There are certainly openings in the team’s lineup this winter with Luis Arraez and Ryan O’Hearn both hitting the free agent market. If they aren’t retained, bringing in someone of Diaz’s caliber would make a lot of sense.
Similarly to Arraez, defense and base running aren’t a big part of his game. But he can certainly make an impact on a team with his bat.
He finished the 2025 season with a .300/.366/.482 slash line and 136 OPS+ despite getting off to an incredibly slow start. When the calendar flipped to June, he had an underwhelming .241/.286/.405 slash line, and questions arose whether he could be an effective hitter any longer.
Those concerns were put to bed for the remainder of the season. Diaz was one of the best hitters in baseball from June through the end of the season with a .336/.412/.529 slash line, hitting 17 home runs and 17 doubles with 49 RBI.
Yandy Diaz offers incredible value with his bat
That kind of production is exactly what the Padres could use in the top half of their lineup to help offset the impending losses.
Another appealing thing about Diaz is his contract. He provides incredible value with his level of production compared to how much he is going to cost a team against the salary cap.
In 2026, he will be playing under a club option that costs $12 million. There is another option for 2027 that is worth $10 million, but will vest at $13 million should he make at least 500 plate appearances during the 2026 campaign.
His age could be a detriment to some, but even at 34 years old, he is showing no signs of slowing down. For all of the reasons that a team such as San Diego would love to acquire him, Tampa Bay should be inclined to keep him.
