The San Diego Padres are going to sell at the trade deadline.
At 38-50, the Padres are already 17.5 games out of the division lead in the National League West and are 9.5 games out of a second Wild Card spot. They will not be contending when the non-waiver trade deadline comes on Aug. 1. San Diego has some interesting pieces to deal, including left-hander Drew Pomeranz, first baseman Wil Myers, and even outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. Teams are becoming increasingly more interested in trading for Upton, reports FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal. Prior to the season, trade partners were only interested in Upton, who is owed about $40 million on his current contract, if the Padres were willing to pay his entire salary. Now, as Rosenthal reports, Upton's suitors are more likely to view him in a conventional sense on a "sliding scale," per se. This means, the more money the Padres decide to pay Upton in a possible trade, the better the talent they get in return. Upton, who turns 32 in August, is having his best offensive season since 2008. Upton is hitting for a .265/.311/.458 slash line with 16 home runs and 44 RBI in 349 plate appearances. He could be on pace to set a career high in the home run department. According to FanGraphs, Upton has been worth six offensive runs above average, a half of a run defensively, and over three runs on the bases. This equates to a 1.8 fWAR, already his highest total since 2012. Over his last 21 games, Upton has been playing exceptionally well, hitting .341/.370/.648 with eight home runs and 16 RBI. His value has never been higher since signing his current contract with Atlanta in the 2012-2013 offseason. The Dodgers, White Sox, and perhaps even Royals could show interest in Upton as the trade deadline approaches. --Devan Fink
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