Last week rumors suggested the Boston Red Sox were talking to the San Diego Padres about some of their starting pitchers, but before that development Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said the team wasn't expected to make a trade before Opening Day.
Now the Padres have sent a scout to Florida to take a look at third baseman Pablo Sandoval.
"The fact that [the Padres] are watching Sandoval the next couple of days - he went 0 for 3 in a minor league game Monday and is scheduled to start Tuesday for the first time since going down with back stiffness - may or may not mean anything, but they're certainly leaving all options open," writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
The Red Sox and Padres would seemingly match up in a trade, especially if Boston is looking to acquire starter James Shields, who is owed $65 million over the next three seasons. Sandoval, 29, just finished the first year of a five-year, $95-million contract. San Diego has been open to moving Shields, but it's unclear if they'd be willing to swap salaries without the Red Sox at least paying the difference.
Cafardo said the Pads would "probably want a prospect" in return for Shields, and Boston has plenty of those.
The Red Sox were linked to the Padres' pitching due to continual issues with their staff in spring training. They have no definitive No. 2 starter because Eduardo Rodriguez is starting the year off on the disabled list while Clay Buchholz and Rick Porcello have not performed well this spring.
Joe Kelly has been the team's best starter this spring after posting a 3-0 record with a 1.35 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 18 strikeouts in five outings (20 innings), which is a good sign, but doesn't really bode well for the rotation as a whole.
Boston has been a speculated landing spot for Shields in the past, and with a need to fortify and deepen their starting staff, it would make sense to deal for the veteran right-hander.
Same goes for San Diego. The team made an offer to Sandoval before he opted to sign with the Red Sox last offseason, but they've reportedly been interested in him after that in a potential trade. The Pads have Yangervis Solarte as their starting third baseman and could use an upgrade, as they make sure Sandoval's recently-injured back is holding up well.
After all, the Red Sox may have little use for Sandoval following his career-worst campaign in 2015 and the emergence of Travis Shaw, who is hitting and fielding well in 18 games during spring training.
#RedSox could open the season with Castillo ($10.3 million AAV) and Sandoval ($20 million AAV) on the bench.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) March 29, 2016
Again, Dombrowski said the team was not going to make a big move before Opening Day and other reports have suggested that, but this could be a perfect opportunity to bolster the pitching staff and get rid of an overpaid veteran that is being supplanted by an up-and-coming youngster.
