The San Diego Padres acquired two-time batting champion Luis Arraez from the Miami Marlins along with nearly $8 million on Saturday in a deal for four players that left San Diego responsible only for the major league minimum salary.
The deal seems to have emerged out of nowhere, but it is important to note that Arraez has been a trade candidate for a Marlins team that is struggling immensely this season. Even last year, Miami barely snuck into the playoffs and were clearly outclassed by the rest of the postseason teams, winning 33 games by one run. Now they've sent Arraez to the Padres in exchange for some prospects.
Arraez commented on the deal on social media:
“I want to thank the Marlins for the opportunity and my teammates for making me feel like part of the family since day one. Marlins fans, I'm forever grateful for your unconditional love and support. Padres, thanks for believing in me; I'm so ready for this new challenge!”
Why would the Padres trade for a second baseman when they have Xander Bogaerts already? Well, Arraez is versatile and can also play first base. But more likely than not, he'll slot in as San Diego's DH and focus strictly on his bat. Even though Bogaerts is struggling immensely to find himself offensively, he is a solid defender and he'll eventually come around at the plate.
Arraez is a huge get for the Padres
Luis Arraez is one of the best hitters in Major League Baseball. He doesn't have a lot of pop in his bat, but the newest Padres player is an absolute hit machine. Arraez slashed .354 in 2023 with the Marlins while going deep 10 times. This year, he's batting .299. Despite having just nine extra-base hits, Arraez is a tough out every time he steps up to the plate.
Arraez finished eighth in NL MVP voting last year after setting career highs in average, hits (203), home runs (10) and RBIs (69). He also hit for his first career cycle on April 11 last year at Philadelphia.
Since making his major league debut in 2019, Arraez leads major league players with a .324 average. He has hit over .300 in four of his five previous major league seasons and became the first player to win a batting title in both leagues in consecutive seasons.
The 27-year-old Arraez has only struck out 7.5% of his at-bats in his career, serving as potentially the best contact hitter in the MLB. He becomes a free agent after the 2025 World Series, so it'll be interesting to see if the Padres look to sign him to a long-term deal or just consider him a short-term rental as the team looks to make a postseason push.
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