San Diego general manager Josh Byrnes has been hard at work this winter, and he might not be finished yet.
The San Diego Padres are "likely to continue" their offseason shopping spree, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock.
General manager Josh Byrnes has already signed free agent pitchers Josh Johnson and Joaquin Benoit. He has also added outfielder Seth Smith and infielder Ryan Jackson in trades with the Athletics and Astros this month.
Now, his focus has shifted to acquiring a left-handed reliever and "shuffling out depth" on the 25-man roster.
"We're talking about guys that are in an area of surplus, trading them for depth that can better serve us."
Byrnes has been consistently asked about top prospects Matt Wisler and Austin Hedges in trade talks this offseason, but trading either player would likely require a marquee return. The Padres would like to add to the talent in their upper minor league levels rather than subtract from it, so any additional player swaps are likely to be centered around low-level prospects or current major leaguers.
Hedges, Wisler, and other top Padres prospects are still a year or two away, but the farm in San Diego is one of the most accomplished in baseball, ranking third in Baseball America's recent farm system rankings. A system like that seems to lend itself to a wait-and-see approach for the Padres, but with league revenues at an all-time high, the club may feel as though they can have the best of both worlds.
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