Padres dangling surprise trade chip feels like baiting the Yankees to get fleeced again

Last offseason, the San Diego Padres sent Juan Soto and Trent Grisham to the New York Yankees for a huge package. Today, Soto is a Met, the Yankees still don’t have their 28th World Series, and the Padres have a new ace in Michael King. Now, the Padres are in for another fire sale. A.J. Preller is listening attentively to offers for some of his top one-year rentals. However, there may be a little more than just rentals the Padres are actively shopping.

MLB insider Jeff Passan of ESPN believes the Padres are willing to part with Jake Cronenworth as well. In his assessment, Passan wrote this:

“San Diego general manager A.J. Preller, always willing to consider creative deals, could move infielders Jake Cronenworth or Luis Arraez. With a paucity of on-the-dirt free agents, either would bring back a premium.”

Luis Arraez is a prime rental target the Yankees could look to swing. Jake Cronenworth, on the other hand, would come with several years of control. But is Cronenworth the prize Brian Cashman should chase after?

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Jake Cronenworth is not the infielder the Yankees want

The first two years of Cronenworth’s career were satisfactory and might justify a trade. However, the utility infielder has not been able to match his early performance. The past three seasons saw Cronenworth post averages of .239, .229, and .241 consecutively.

Last season, Cronenworth slashed .241/.324/.390/.714 with 17 home runs. But as a left-handed pull-hitter, wouldn’t he be an excellent fit with the short-right porch in Yankee Stadium?

Cronenworth hit several batted-balls that would appear to clear the fence at Yankee Stadium, however, Baseball Savant maintains that his home run total would have remained the same in the Bronx when including all park factors. Overall, Cronenworth’s contributions are similar to that of Gleyber Torres’ last season, only Cronenworth was a neutral defender; Torres was a negative defender. Replacing Torres with a left-handed version of Torres might not be the best idea. But regardless of what Baseball Savant calculates, could it be a worthwhile risk?

As Passan noted, the lack of a market for infielders works to the Padres’ advantage. But there is more than just the trade aspect itself. The Padres want to lower payroll, and unloading Cronenworth would be a great start. Cronenworth is owed nearly $11.3 million next season. From there, he is owed nearly $12.3 million per season through 2030.

So far, Cronenworth’s reputation wouldn’t justify trading for him. It is tempting to add a relatively inexpensive left-handed bat to the lineup, but the risk of Cronenworth underperforming expectations for what the Yankees would be giving up is not ideal. For now, Cronenworth should be a pass.