Padres' 2025 Free Agents, Trade Targets, Offseason Guide After Wild Card Exit
Though the San Diego Padres made the postseason for the fourth time in six years, that quest for their first-ever World Series title continues in earnest after a disappointing immediate exit at the hands of the Chicago Cubs in the wild card round.
As was the case in 2022, the Padres were extremely aggressive at the trade deadline, unloading top-tier prospects in the hopes of finally winning it all. However, they'll have some soul-searching and hole-plugging to do this winter if they want to be in even better shape next year.
Now that it's officially San Diego's offseason, what lies ahead?
We'll discuss impending free agents and key option decisions before identifying areas of need and possible targets, culminating in a way-too-early projection of the Padres' 26-man roster when they open the 2026 campaign against the Detroit Tigers, just over six months from now.
Notable Free Agents
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Notable Free Agents
- RHP Dylan Cease
- 1B/2B Luis Arráez
- IF Jose Iglesias
- 1B/DH Ryan O'Hearn
- LHP Nestor Cortes
Though Dylan Cease did eclipse 200 strikeouts for a fifth consecutive season, his walk year was nowhere near the springboard into free agency that he and his agent were hoping for.
Best of luck to San Diego in trying to talk him into a one-year "prove it" contract, though. Cease's ERA has fluctuated wildly from year to year, but there's much to be said for both the FIP that has consistently hovered in the 3.10-3.75 range and the fact that he has yet to miss a start due to injury in his big league career.
It's all very reminiscent of when Aaron Nola hit free agency off a 4.46 ERA two years ago and ended up with a seven-year, $172M contract. Cease could be headed for something similar, and the Padres probably can't afford it.
The other somewhat big one here is Luis Arráez, however, the three-time reigning batting champ hasn't been nearly as valuable as he was in 2022 and 2023. Replacing his batting average in the lineup probably isn't feasible, but replacing the overall impact of his batting average, minimal slugging and miserable Fielding Run Value is certainly doable.
Notable Options Decisions
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Notable Club/Player Options
- RHP Michael King ($15M mutual option with $3.75M buyout)
- RHP Robert Suarez (can opt out of final two years, $16M)
- LHP Wandy Peralta (can opt out of final two years, $8.9M)
- LHP Kyle Hart ($5M club option with $500k buyout)
- C Elias Díaz ($7M mutual option with $2M buyout)
- OF Ramón Laureano ($6.5M club option)
It's pretty obvious how the four biggest ones will play out.
Between how well Ramón Laureano has performed since the trade deadline and how dire San Diego's left field situation was before his arrival, there's a near 100 percent chance they'll exercise that $6.5M club option. It's a darn shame he suffered that fractured finger late in the year, but he'll be back.
There's also a near 100 percent chance Robert Suarez will opt for free agency, and that neither of the mutual options with Michael King and Elias Díaz will be exercised, since mutual options almost never get exercised. They'd surely love to bring King back, but he's going to take his $3.75M buyout and pursue a multi-year deal in free agency.
San Diego will most likely decline its club option on Kyle Hart, but perhaps that decision hinges on whether Wandy Peralta decides to opt out. With lefties Adrián Morejón and Yuki Matsui both signed through at least next season, though, the Padres might be content with letting both Hart and Peralta walk.
Biggest Needs
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Starting Pitching
The good news is Joe Musgrove ought to be back at full strength, and Nick Pivetta is still under contract, fresh off a 2025 campaign that was easily the best of his career.
But is Randy Vásquez a legitimate No. 3 starter?
Does Yu Darvish—who turns 40 next August and already has a 4.43 ERA and 4.22 FIP over the past three seasons—have enough left in the tank to be counted on at No. 4?
Is JP Sears even a viable option at No. 5 in the Opening Day rotation?
It's a shame they had to part with Stephen Kolek and Ryan Bergert to get Freddy Fermin from Kansas City, because the Padres are likely going to be shopping for at least one, possibly two starting pitchers this offseason.
First Base OR Second Base
Jake Cronenworth isn't going anywhere and can play either first or second base. With Luis Arráez, Jose Iglesias and Ryan O'Hearn all slated for free agency, though, the depth chart on that half of the infield is essentially: Can Cronenworth play both positions at once?
Gavin Sheets can play first base in a pinch, but the fact that San Diego kept putting Arráez there while primarily starting Sheets at either DH or LF speaks volumes to his glovework at first.
Designated Hitter
Speaking of Sheets and the DH slot, did he do enough this season to convince the Padres that he's going to be a legitimate, full-time asset moving forward and not regress to the 85 OPS+ hitter that he was from 2022-24 with the White Sox?
His 19 home runs this season were...respectable. But the DH spot is the low-hanging fruit if the Padres want to address the fact that they didn't even average one home run per game in 2025.
Free Agent Targets
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RHP Chris Bassitt, RHP Merrill Kelly
The Padres entered 2025 with a payroll of a little less than $210M, per Baseball Prospectus, and they're already committed to more than $140M in 2026 just in the seven salaries of Xander Bogaerts, Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr., Joe Musgrove, Nick Pivetta, Yu Darvish and Jake Cronenworth, per Spotrac.
That doesn't mean their only option is to go shopping in the bargain bin of free agent pitchers. However, it's tough to see them shelling out the big bucks to re-sign Dylan Cease or Michael King, or to sign a Framber Valdez, Shane Bieber, Ranger Suarez or Zac Gallen.
A two-year, $30M-ish deal with a 37-year-old pitcher who has a mid-3s ERA over the past four seasons is probably more in their wheelhouse, in which case either Chris Bassitt (3.77 ERA since 2022) or Merrill Kelly (3.47 ERA since 2022) could fit the bill.
2B Gleyber Torres
Playing on a one-year, $15M contract with Detroit, Torres' 2025 campaign wasn't markedly better than his walk year with the Yankees in 2024. It's likely he'll fetch a relatively similar salary on a deal of three or four years, which is probably what the Padres are looking for with nary an infield prospect anywhere close to regular work in the big leagues—unless you're really drinking the Will Wagner Kool-Aid.
DH Marcell Ozuna
Since the implementation of the universal designated hitter, the Padres have been reluctant to put a "pure" DH on their roster. Gavin Sheets played more games in the field than he did at DH, and yet he was the first player in the past three years to make at least 60 appearances at DH in a single season for San Diego.
But if they're willing to switch it up, Ozuna could be right there for the taking. And, for what it's worth, he always has hit pretty well at Petco Park, with an .846 OPS in 125 career plate appearances there. Among Padres, only Fernando Tatis Jr. (.885) fared better than .800 there this season.
Trade Targets
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RHP Sandy Alcantara
The golden goose for any team looking to trade for a starting pitcher this winter, Sandy Alcantara is owed $17M in 2026 with a $21M club option for 2027.
Through his first 19 starts of this season with a 7.14 ERA, it was debatable at best whether the 2022 NL Cy Young winner recovering from Tommy John surgery was worth both the dollar amount and the significant prospect haul it was going to take to acquire him ahead of the trade deadline, which is precisely why he stayed put in Miami. But with eight quality starts and an ERA just a bit over 3.00 from July 23 onward, he's back and ready to ignite a bidding war.
2B Brandon Lowe
With Brandon Lowe, talent has never been the issue. For his eight-year career, he has an .807 OPS, averaging 34 home runs and 97 RBI per 162 games played. But he missed more than 200 games from 2022-24 before blossoming back into an All-Star in a mostly healthy 2025 campaign.
Assuming Tampa Bay exercises his $11.5M club option before finding out what other teams would be willing to offer for it, he's going to be a hot commodity this winter. And like Jake Cronenworth, he's more than capable of playing either first or second base.
LF/DH Taylor Ward
Although he only hit .228, Taylor Ward's 36 home runs and 103 RBI were the pleasant surprises of yet another losing season in Anaheim.
Ward has one year of arbitration eligibility remaining, which is also how much longer the Angels have to keep setting more than $38M on fire in the name of Anthony Rendon. They have for too long refused to accept embracing even one rebuilding year, but maybe the Padres can convince them to budge on Ward.
Projected 2026 Opening Day Roster
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Starting Lineup
RF Fernando Tatis Jr.
CF Jackson Merrill
3B Manny Machado
2B Brandon Lowe
SS Xander Bogaerts
LF Ramón Laureano
DH Gavin Sheets
1B Jake Cronenworth
C Freddy Fermin
Bench
IF Will Wagner
OF Bryce Johnson
C Victor Caratini
2B/OF Adam Frazier
Rotation
RHP Nick Pivetta
RHP Joe Musgrove
RHP Merrill Kelly
RHP Randy Vásquez
RHP Yu Darvish
LHP J.P. Sears
Bullpen
RHP Mason Miller
LHP Adrián Morejón
LHP Wandy Peralta
LHP Yuki Matsui
RHP Jeremiah Estrada
RHP David Morgan
RHP Jason Adam (if recovered from ruptured quadriceps)
Between Joe Musgrove returning from missing all of 2024 and the combined age of Yu Darvish and Merrill Kelly, a six-man rotation might be the way to go for the Padres.
Not expecting a particularly loud offseason here, though. They already addressed the impending departure of Robert Suarez with the acquisition of Mason Miller. Trading for both Ramón Laureano and Freddy Fermin also pre-emptively addressed some potential problem areas.
It would be great to see them aim a little bit higher than a reunion with Adam Frazier for that final roster spot, but we'll see if it's in the budget to make a medium-sized splash to sign Marcell Ozuna or trade for Taylor Ward, both of whom figure to land in the one-year, $14M range.
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