It doesn't appear San Diego Padres general manager A.J. Preller is satisfied heading into spring training with Alexi Amarista and Clint Barmes as his options at shortstop. The team has internally discussed acquiring another player.
The most active team of the 2014-2015 offseason is still at it. Aside from still being in talks with the Philadelphia Phillies about a possible trade for Cole Hamels, the Padres have talked about pursuing Milwaukee Brewers' prospect Luis Sardinas. Milwaukee acquired Sardinas and a couple of other prospects from the Texas Rangers in exchange for Yovani Gallardo in January.
FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reported this update on Saturday, but also noted there have been no talks between the clubs regarding such a deal. Sardinas was with the Rangers when Preller was the assistant general manager to Jon Daniels, which is believed to be why he's expressing interest in the prospect. The 21-year-old Sardinas slashed .281/.302/.364 with 51 runs scored, one home run, 37 RBIs and 10 stolen bases in 81 games between Double-A Frisco and Triple-A Round Rock. He reached the majors last year and appeared in 43 games for the Rangers.
However, the Padres discussing Sardinas as an option doesn't foreshadow anything. The Brewers' willingness to surrender a prospect they just acquired who happens to be the ninth ranked shortstop, according to MLB.com, could be fairly unlikely. Nonetheless, San Diego may have a case here if we look at the Brewers' needs.
Milwaukee's middle infield is set with Scooter Gennett at second base and Jean Segura at shortstop, and they also have two prospects ranked in their top 10 (Orlando Arcia and Gilbert Lara) who are capable of playing the middle infield. Additionally, assistant general manager Gord Ash recently mentioned the team would like to add more veteran presence to the team's bullpen, even after acquiring Neal Cotts and discussing a trade with the Phillies for Jonathan Papelbon.
San Diego's bullpen ranked second in ERA (2.73) last season and fourth on opponent's batting average (.223). Their relievers include closer Jaoquin Benoit, Kevin Quackenbush, Alex Torres, Nick Vincent, Dale Thayer, Shawn Kelley, Brandon Maurer and others.
There's certainly no guarantee for a trade, but based on each team's needs it could very well become an option for both clubs.
