San Diego Padres GM A.J. Preller has made his first move of the trade deadline, and it’s a much-needed one.
The Padres are finalizing a deal that will send San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Robbie Ray to San Diego, as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Ray is a two-time All-Star, and he won the American League Cy Young Award in 2021 as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays.
The San Diego Padres are finalizing a trade to acquire left-hander Robbie Ray from the San Francisco Giants, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 3, 2026
For the past few weeks, it looked like San Diego would sell, with stars such as Mason Miller linked as potential trade chips.
The return going to San Francisco is Miguel Mendez and Joniel Hernandez, according to Ken Rosenthal and Dennis Lin of The Athletic.
However, the Padres won eight of nine games coming into Monday, including three straight over the Giants. On Thursday, Ray started against the Padres at Petco Park, and he got the win to move to 10-6 as he threw six innings with just one run and one walk.
Now, Ray is set to head to San Diego as the Padres add much-needed pitching depth to the rotation.
The Giants have not had a great year, and Ray’s name has surfaced in trade rumors since May. Earlier on Monday, San Francisco traded second baseman Luis Arraez to the Philadelphia Phillies, and starting pitcher Tyler Mahle was traded to the Atlanta Braves over the weekend.
