Overview
- Multiple outlets reported Thursday that San Diego president A.J. Preller is already 'poking around' the market and has been linked to free-agent-to-trade targets Aroldis Chapman and Josh Hader.
- Chapman is a comparatively feasible target because he is on a one-year $13 million deal with a mutual 2027 option and has posted dominant numbers for Boston in 2026.
- Hader is a more complex pursuit because he is rehabbing from biceps tendinitis, holds full no-trade rights, and is under a multiyear, roughly $95 million contract that would complicate any trade.
- No teams have confirmed formal negotiations and most coverage frames proposed exchanges as speculative; several outlets presented hypothetical prospect-for-closer packages to show how deals might be structured.
- The Padres already have one of baseball’s best bullpens but have leaned heavily on top arms this season, and reporting says incoming ownership willingness to spend could change San Diego’s ability to absorb salary or trade premium prospects.