The San Diego Padres will have their two aces hit the open market this offseason, and they likely won’t be able to keep both.
Who will the Padres re-sign—Michael King or Dylan Cease? That’s the decision general manager A.J. Preller must make this winter.
But in the meantime, offseason rumors are swirling. And Mitch Bannon of The Athletic added to that discussion in his recent mailbag—linking Cease to the Toronto Blue Jays. With several starters entering free agency in Toronto, could the Padres’ star be a good fit?
Cease to the Blue Jays
Toronto will likely be in the market for starting pitchers this offseason, as Shane Bieber (player option), Max Scherzer and Chris Bassitt are set to hit free agency.
The Blue Jays already have a few options for next season’s starting rotation—and they could re-sign Bieber to fill a hole—but nothing is certain. That’s where Cease comes in, and Bannon explains how he’d fit in Toronto.
“A reunion with Bieber would fill a hole, but other top options for the Jays include San Diego Padres righties Dylan Cease and Michael King, along with Texas Rangers righties Tyler Mahle and Merrill Kelly. Though Cease struggled this year, he has Cy Young upside. His inning-hauling durability fits the Jays’ big-ticket pitching signing trend, too.”
Cease is indeed having a down year, posting a 4.81 ERA over 28 starts this season. Still, he’s projected to command a six-year, $156 million contract in free agency, per Spotrac.
That value could be partly due to his durability. Cease has made more than 30 starts in each of the last four seasons, and he’s on pace to do the same this year.
That’s more appealing to some teams than Michael King, who’s an exceptional pitcher but continually struggles with injuries.
Regardless, both Padres’ aces will be at the center of free agency this winter.
