The best prospect the Padres have had in their system in a while currently plays for the Syracuse Chiefs. Yes, that is the Triple A affiliate of the Wahington Nationals, but shortstop Trea Turner was drafted by the Padres. He was traded to the Nationals as part of a three-team deal that was the harshest of several raids on the Padres’ farm system.
In addition to Turner playing for another franchise, Matt Wisler, Casey Kelly and minor leaguer Max Fried are now pitching for the Atlanta Braves and Rymer Liriano was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. Braves rookie outfielder Mallex Smith was also part of the same trade as Fried.
As a result, the Padres need prospects, and not just any prospects: They need the type of prospects they got for sending Kimbrel to the Boston Red Sox. In that trade, the Padres received shortstop Javier Guerra and outfielder Manuel Margot, both of whom are now the team’s top two prospects according to MLB.com.
Entering Sunday, Margot was slashing .295/.351/.422 as a 21-year old in Triple A. He and fellow Triple A masher Hunter Renfroe (.321/.337/.591 with 15 home runs) give the Padres’ outfield a bright future.
Guerra has struggled this season, slashing .203/.271/.323, but it’s his glove that will carry him to the majors. And considering it’s been a long time since the Padres had an above-average shortstop, the team will deal with some offensive struggles.
Next: An urgent trade