In a three-team deal, the San Diego Padres acquired Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Joe Musgrove. Jeff Passan of ESPN was the first to report the news on Twitter. The New York Mets were the third team involved in the trade.
The San Diego Padres are in agreement on a deal to acquire right-hander Joe Musgrove from the Pittsburgh Pirates, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 18, 2021
Musgrove is the third starting pitcher that the Padres have acquired this offseason. San Diego acquired Blake Snell from the Tampa Bay Rays and Yu Darvish from the Chicago Cubs last month. For the Padres, this is another significant addition.
With Mike Clevinger, who is currently on the Injured List recovering from Tommy John surgery, all four pitchers are under control for the next few seasons. Furthermore, Joe Musgrove adds some valuable depth to San Diego’s rotation.
Musgrove finished the 2020 season with a 3.86 ERA over 39 and two-thirds innings of work or eight starts. In that span, he posted a 12.5 K/9 rate and held opposing hitters to a .226 batting average. The right-hander is entering his age-28 season this year.
The Return for Joe Musgrove
In return for Joe Musgrove, the Pittsburgh Pirates will receive a package of five-players. Four of those players are from the Padres, while the other one is from the Mets. Dennis Lin, who covers the team for The Athletic, was the first with the return.
Full return for Joe Musgrove, per sources: Joey Lucchesi, Hudson Head, David Bednar, Omar Cruz, Drake Fellows.
— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) January 18, 2021
The first part of the return is Joey Lucchesi who is heading to the Mets. Lucchesi made his official MLB debut in 2018 and has been utilized primarily as a starting pitcher. He posted a 7.94 ERA over three appearances (two starts and one relief appearance) in 2020.
For the Pirates the first part of the return is Hudson Head who ranked as the Padres seventh overall prospect. He last played Rookie Ball in 2019 and has the potential to be an everyday centerfielder at the big league level.
Both David Bednar and Omar Cruz ranked in the Top 20 in the Padres farm system. Bednar made his debut in 2019 and threw a total of six and one-third innings last year. Furthermore, Cruz is a left-hander who is on track to hit the big leagues in 2023.
Finally, the last part of the trade for Pittsburgh was Drake Fellows. Fellows was drafted during the sixth round of the 2019 MLB Draft and is a starting pitching prospect.
Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline reports that the Pirates will be receiving Endy Rodriguez as well.
#Pirates will be getting Endy Rodriguez from the #Mets in this now 3-team deal, with Lucchesi heading to NY. No. 14 on Mets list: https://t.co/cczlgnkhgi @Mets @Pirates
— Jonathan Mayo (@JonathanMayo) January 18, 2021
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Players Mentioned: Joe Musgrove, Blake Snell, Yu Darvish, Mike Clevinger, Joey Lucchesi, Hudson Head, David Bednar, Omar Cruz, Drake Fellows
