Padres trade rumors: All-Star pitcher Drew Pomeranz targeted by numerous teams

Padres starting pitcher Drew Pomeranz has been in the news quite a bit lately, and it appears he will continue to have his name bandied about for the foreseeable future. A late addition to the National League All-Star team after he was initially snubbed not just once, but twice, the league leader in batting average against is now the subject of many trade rumors. No actual potential deals have been reported, but Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that "about 10 teams" have asked the club about Pomeranz, including the Marlins, Orioles, Rangers, and Red Sox.

The one team whose name keeps popping up the most, even since before Pomeranz threw a scoreless fourth inning in the Midsummer Classic, is the Texas Rangers. It's an interesting matchup as far as potential return, considering that Padres general manager AJ Preller knows the Rangers' system inside and out thanks to his time as Texas general manager Jon Daniels's right-hand man before taking his current position in San Diego less than two years ago.

With the Padres out of contention this year and expected to stay that way the following two full seasons, it makes sense to strike while the iron is hot on Pomeranz, who can leave via free agency after the 2018 season. In the recent past, San Diego has held onto starting pitchers Andrew Cashner and Tyson Ross in lost seasons, only to see their trade value evaporate. Of course, fear of that happening is no reason to move someone in a lopsided deal, so the return for Pomeranz in any deal that works out will have to be impressive. With a third of the teams in baseball showing interest, it seems that a few of those would have serious interest, and could generate quite the beneficial bidding war.