The San Diego Padres had an abysmal showing from their starting pitchers this season, which is exactly why they should target one that is currently pitching on the sport's biggest stage.
Joe Musgrove was expected to be the Opening Day starter going into spring training, but countless setbacks pushed his debut to the wild-card round. Nick Pivetta had a career-year in 2025, but his encore included missing close to five months of action.
New rotation addition Walker Buehler had a rough first half of the season, Griffin Canning finished the season with a 5.68 ERA and even Lucas Giolito — added to replace Pivetta amid his absence — lasted just 29.2 innings with a 5.16 ERA before his season ended towards the end of June.
Cy Young award winner Robbie Ray was brought in at the trade deadline to try and address this issue and saw his ERA go from 3.08 pre-trade to 5.02 after it. All-Star Casey Mize had the same fate with a 2.70 ERA that ballooned to 7.46 after the deal.
All of these names (with the exception of Musgrove) could be free agents this offseason as nothing is guaranteed for the pitching roster come 2027 (though Pivetta's $14 million team option could be picked up).
Even the most effective pitcher this season in right-hander Michael King has a player option that he is likely to decline. In 2026, he put up an ERA of 3.21 on a career-high 32 starts (185 innings).
With almost nothing but uncertainty surrounding the rotation, the Padres would be wise to put destiny into their own hands, and a president of baseball operations like AJ Preller is the perfect candidate to do so.
Padres Should Trade for Drew Rasmussen From Rays This Offseason
If Preller can pull off a trade for Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen, it would immediately upgrade the 2027 rotation.
Rasmussen is coming off a regular season that included an ERA of 2.67 and his second consecutive All-Star nod. The 30-year-old led the American League in WHIP (0.913) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.44).
Through three postseason starts (21 innings), he has a minuscule 1.29 ERA.
The 174 strikeouts tossed to just 32 walks is impressive, and doing so on a career-high 172 innings is just as promising, especially for a team that had the fourth-fewest innings logged by starters.
Ahead of the 2027 campaign, Rasmussen has a $20 million club option that the Rays are expected to pick up, but according to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand, will look to trade if they aren't comfortable spending the most on a one-year contract in franchise history.
The Padres would be wise to pursue a trade for Rasmussen, who would instantly become the ace of the team and be on an expiring contract, lessening his trade value.
While the Padres will need to be cognizant of payroll this offseason, $20 million for a true ace would be a bargain as they reshape their starting rotation this offseason.
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