Chris Paddack

MINNEAPOLIS -- March Madness may be over, but the Twins and Padres have dropped one more buzzer-beater with a major deal just hours before the deadline to ...

It is worth noting that Paddack last pitched as a "piggyback" starter behind Blake Snell for the Padres, and that could also be an option with someone like Chris Archer, who arrived with the Twins late in camp. It is tough for the Minnesota clubhouse to part with Rogers, who is one of the longest-tenured Twins and a clear leader of the pitching group in both his presence and his performance, which made him one of the elite relievers of the game across the last four seasons. But as the power throwers in the bullpen, Alcala and Duran could also fit with their overwhelming stuff if they're able to handle the pressure. There's nobody in the Twins' rotation who stands out as an immediate candidate to be bumped, especially since Ober was arguably the Twins' most consistent starter throughout the '21 campaign. Still, he's a controllable, young starter with upside who flashed the ability to get big league hitters out during that rookie campaign, when he had a 3.33 ERA in 26 starts. That cost them Taylor Rogers, their closer and longtime fan favorite, in addition to once-top-prospect outfielder Brent Rooker, who was set to be involved in the club's final roster crunch.

The Minnesota Twins have acquired right-handed pitchers Chris Paddack and Emilio Pagán from the San Diego Padres for All-Star left-handed pitcher Taylor ...

Since 2016, his 319 appearances rank fourth in the American League and first most among AL left-handers. He has pitched in parts of three seasons for the Padres since 2019, going 20-19 with a 4.21 ERA. Paddack posted a 7-7 record with a 5.07 ERA in starting 22 of his 23 appearances. Its rotation, meanwhile, has been overhauled in the past year. Pagan made a career-high 67 relief appearances last season, going 4-3 with a 4.83 ERA. The 30-year-old has pitched parts of five major league seasons with Seattle, Oakland, Tampa Bay and San Diego, going 13-10 with a 3.73 ERA. He saved 20 games for the Rays in 2019. Minnesota spent big on offense during the offseason by signing free agent Carlos Correa to a three-year, $105.3 million contract.

The Twins acquired righties Chris Paddack and Emilio Pagan in a trade sending closer Taylor Rogers to San Diego. Read more at MLB Trade Rumors.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and Kevin Acee and Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported last night that the two teams were discussing trade scenarios involving Paddack and Rogers. ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported this morning that a Paddack/Rogers trade was happening. Paddack has been a regular in the San Diego rotation for the past three seasons but was largely nudged out of the frame by a series of high-profile trade acquisitions. He’ll give them an option there, at first base and at designated hitter — one who has light-tower power but also one who has punched out in 32.1% of his 234 big league plate appearances (against just a 6.4% walk rate). The 6’3″, 225-pound Rooker gives San Diego an intriguing power bat but also something of a project, as he’s already 27 years of age and hasn’t yet proven that he can handle big league pitching. A penchant for serving up home runs has been Pagan’s only real blemish, but if the Twins can clean up that issue — as the Rays did in 2019 and the Mariners did in 2017 — they’ll have a closing-caliber reliever on their hands for the next two seasons. Rooker is the fourth known piece of the deal at this time and gives the Padres a power-hitting corner outfield option who has yet to piece things together at the MLB level. La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune added that the Twins will receive a PTBNL, and Dan Hayes of The Athletic tweeted that Minnesota was including some cash in the swap. If the Twins are able to help Paddack establish that third pitch, it stands to reason that his heater and changeup can trend closer to their 2019 effectiveness. Pagan has always been homer-prone, but that flaw ratcheted up to new levels in 2021 when he yielded an average of 2.27 long balls per nine frames. Minnesota is acquiring a pair of arms under club control for multiple seasons, as Paddack, who is earning $2.25MM in 2021 is only in his first season of arbitration eligibility. At that point, Paddack looked like a cornerstone piece for the Friars, and any near-term trade involving him would’ve seemed nearly impossible to fathom. Paddack averaged 94.9 mph on his fastball last season and has been lauded for his plus changeup since his prospect days, but his curveball has been a below-average pitch for him at the big league level. His 2020 campaign resulted in a 4.73 ERA in with a diminished 23.7% strikeout rate.