The best trade offer each Dylan Cease suitor could make to steal ace from Padres

The MLB trade deadline is already off and running, with the Seattle Mariners' trade for Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Josh Naylor kicking off what should be an exciting arms race around the league. And few prizes loom larger right now than San Diego Padres righty Dylan Cease, whom the team has reportedly been willing to make available despite currently occupying the third and final NL Wild Card spot.

It's been a relatively down year for Cease, but his stuff is still as electric as ever, and in a seller's market for pitching, you better believe he'll be in high demand. In fact, Jon Heyman reports that there are at least six teams who have reached out to the Padres lately: four AL East teams (the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto Blue Jays) plus the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets.

If that report is true, we should be in for one heck of a bidding war. But which team actually stands the best chance of winning it? Put the Rays off to the side for a second, since it's unclear whether they're actually buying right now. Instead, let's break down the best offer that each of the five remaining teams could offer San Diego, based on what the Padres are going to want in return (read: help in left field and at catcher, plus pitching options to backfill Cease's spot in the rotation).

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop during the MLB season.

Boston Red Sox

Duran feels like the best single asset the Padres could reasonably acquire for Cease, both because of the immediate fit in left field and because of his years of team control remaining. He plays the position Preller needs the most, and he's an established plus big-league regular, That said, Boston isn't about to give up several years of Duran for two months of Cease straight-up, so San Diego needs to add a little more to get this deal over the finish line.

Estrada and Hightower should do it. The former addresses Boston's biggest need down the stretch, adding a flamethrowing righty to pair with Aroldis Chapman in high-leverage situations, while the latter is an ascending prospect who could factor into the picture at second base, shortstop or third base depending on how things shake out with Marcelo Mayer, Trevor Story and Alex Bregman moving forward.

Chicago Cubs

Duran may be more established, but if Preller is looking for an upside play, he could be enticed by Alcantara, a top-100 prospect who's been red-hot at Triple-A. The plate discipline is a concern (he went 1-for-10 in a brief MLB cameo last year), but the power/speed combo is very, very real, and he could factor into San Diego's outfield plans right away upon coming over. McGuire may feel like a throw-in, but he'd be a nice platoon partner behind the plate with Elias Diaz, and a significant improvement over what the Padres have been running out there at catcher for most of the year.

Giving up Estrada would hurt a bit, but if any team has the depth to withstand that sort of loss, it's San Diego, with Robert Suarez and Jason Adam still at the back end along with guys like Yuki Matsui and Wandy Peralta. This would be a return engagement to Chicago for Estrada, and he would do wonders for Craig Counsell as he looks to broaden his bullpen circle of trust a little bit.

New York Mets

The Mets have a ton of pitching depth, which means they can send back a player in Megill who the Padres could reasonably project to if not match Cease's production so far this year then at least be a competent No. 4 or No. 5 starter. He was struggling a bit before landing on the IL with a sprained elbow (he's expected to be back sometime in August), but overall he had a 3.95 ERA in 14 starts, and he has two more years of team control remaining. Gilbert's stock has deflated a bit since he was the centerpiece of the Justin Verlander trade two years ago, but he's swinging it pretty well at Triple-A and would bring at least a modicum of upside to San Diego's miserable left-field situation.

This one may not seem as flashy as the first two, and maybe it's not, but Megill and Gilbert could help right away. Plus, it's just tough to see David Stearns giving up someone like Nolan McLean or Brandon Sproat for a rental, and New York doesn't have a lot of other outfield or catcher options who are both big-league ready and expendable.

New York Yankees

The Padres were rumored to be interested in Escarra last winter, but he's blocked in New York behind both Austin Wells and Ben Rice. Obviously that's not enough in a one-for-one swap with Cease, but Selvidge is a rapidly rising prospect who's excelling at Double-A while Jones could factor in to the team's outfield mix as soon as next year as he continues to mash in Somerset.

If San Diego wants to tilt this package a little bit more toward the present than the future, why not swap in Grisham for one of the two prospects? The Yankees have an outfield surplus as it is, with Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger and Jasson Dominguez all demanding for playing time, and a reunion with Grisham would do wonders in left field for the Padres.

Toronto Blue Jays

Speaking of outfielders: If you're looking for expendable but still useful corner bats, the Jays have them in spades, from Loperfido to Alan Roden to Nathan Lukes. Loperfido immediately profiles as San Diego's new starting left fielder, while Bloss can help this pitching staff right away. And who knows: Martinez has struggled at Triple-A this year and still hasn't improved his plate discipline, but if the Padres can tone back his aggression just a little bit, his power makes him a very viable half of a DH platoon with Gavin Sheets.