The White Sox’s top starting pitcher does not need to be moved. This month, Crochet will turn 25. He currently earns $800,000 and is eligible for arbitration for the next two seasons. And while having that much authority would
help the Padres get a lot of players back, they might find it difficult to put together an alluring offer.
According to a person familiar with the White Sox’s thinking, the team would probably need at least one position player prospect with a high ceiling in order to move Crochet. Leodalis De Vries, a shortstop, and catcher Ethan Salas
are the two that San Diego still owns, but the Padres are unwilling to talk about either player unless they get established star talent in return. Preller dealt two young players less than two years ago.
Naturally, crochet is not on the same level as Soto or Ohtani. Salas, eighteen, is ranked as the sixth best baseball prospect by Keith Law of The Athletic. San Diego gave the 17-year-old De Vries a $4.2 million signing bonus in
January. The Padres are known for aggressively pushing their best prospects; De Vries is in Low A and Salas is in High A. Eventually, they hope to add more affordable players to a roster that features several players with nine-
figure contracts, such as homegrown center fielder Jackson Merrill, a 21-year-old rookie who has contributed positively.
As part of their trades for Arraez, the two-time hitting champion, and Cease, the former American League Cy Young Award runner-up, the Padres gave up outfielders Dillon Head (No. 5 in
Sources claim that the Padres have been the team that has pursued Crochet the hardest, but it is probably just Preller’s normal practice as the most constantly active general manager in the league. Later this month, Darvish, 37,
may make a comeback from a groin ailment. Musgrove, 31, will probably stay out of the game until at least July due to a return of the elbow irritation that kept him out of action last month. Mazur’s 7.11 ERA over four starts in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League this season does not change the fact that he is regarded as the organization’s
most reliable senior starter. Musgrove’s current successor, Randy Vásquez, has made six starts for the Padres but has a 5.74 ERA.
