Report: Padres showing strong interest in White Sox lefty Crochet
The San Diego Padres might return to the same well to address their starting pitching concerns.
San Diego has recently shown strong interest in trading for Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet, sources told The Athletic's Dennis Lin and Ken Rosenthal. The Padres' reported interest comes less than three months after they acquired Dylan Cease from the White Sox.
An agreement between the two sides for Crochet is not imminent, Lin and Rosenthal add.
San Diego is seeking starting pitching after placing co-aces Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove on the injured list. Darvish, who's sidelined with a groin strain, could return by the end of the month, but Musgrove is expected to remain on the IL into July because of recurring elbow inflammation.
Crochet has pitched extremely well for the last-place White Sox during his first season as a full-time starter. The 24-year-old owns a 3.49 ERA, 2.88 FIP, and 12.0 K/9 in 69 2/3 innings across 13 starts.
He's also earning $800,000 this season, is arbitration-eligible for the first time in 2025, and doesn't become a free agent until 2027.
San Diego's farm system is pretty thin after the team acquired Cease and Luis Arraez. The Padres still have baseball's No. 5 prospect Ethan Salas, No. 25 prospect Robby Snelling, No. 69 prospect Dylan Lesko, and No. 79 prospect Leodalis De Vries. All four would reportedly be appealing to the rebuilding White Sox.