Chicago Cubs Rumors: Reflecting on the price the Cubs should have paid for Juan Soto

What did the Padres receive in the deal?

It’s hard to say what was the key piece in this deal but Michael King is as good of a place to start as any. He has a career 3.48 ERA and he’s been a similar player this season in San Diego putting together 73 innings of 3.82 ball. He’s a completely fine player, but he’s 29 and only under team control through 2025.

Jhony Brito has pitched exclusively out of the bullpen in the 19 games he’s played in this year for the Padres. He’s carrying a 3.77 ERA over 31 innings, but he’s only struck out 17 batters, so there’s been plenty to be desired there. 

Randy Vasquez has not been great. He’s had a 5.74 ERA over 26.2 innings, and much like Brito, he has not had the kind of stuff that generates strikeouts. He pitched in six games (all starts) for the Padres in 2024 but currently finds himself in Triple-A where his ERA is even worse at 7.45 over 19.1 innings pitched there.

Drew Thorpe is the only pitcher of the bunch with real prospect pedigree, as he was a consensus top-100 prospect prior to 2024, coming in as high as number 45, according to Baseball Prospectus. Ironically, Thorpe never threw a pitch for the Padres as he was later included in the package that stole Dylan Cease away from the Chicago White Sox but he’s been exceptional in Double-A for the White Sox this season as he’s carried a 1.35 ERA over 60 innings. 

Finally,, Kyle Higashioka is a 34-year-old backup catcher with a bit of pop. He’s hit .151/.167/.302 this season and is worth -0.1 WAR.