San Diego Padres have landed Justin Upton
Justin Upton is headed for the National League. Ken Rosenthal with FOXSports.com is the first to report that the San Diego Padres have acquired Upton in a trade with the Atlanta Braves.
The Braves will receive lefty Max Fried, shortstop Jace Peterson, third baseman Dustin Peterson, outfielder Mallex Smith and a low-level, unnamed player, according to CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman.
With the Braves, Upton, 27, batted .270/.342/.491 and recorded 29 homeruns, 34 doubles and 102 RBI in 154 games. He is a career .274 hitter and has amassed a total of 164 homers and 535 RBI over seven major league seasons. Upton will be eligible for free agency after the 2015 season.
With All-Stars Upton and Matt Kemp as well as newly acquired 2013 AL rookie of the Year, Wil Myers, the Padres can expect a better offense this upcoming season. The Padres finished last in the league in team batting average, runs scored, hits, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS last year.
Kemp batted .287/.346/.506 with, 25 homeruns, 38 doubles and 89 RBI with the Dodgers last season. Myers hit .293/.354/.478 with 13 homeruns and 23 doubles last year with the Tampa Bay Rays. Myers had missed some time due to a wrist injury. In the three-team deal with the Washington Nationals and the Tampa Bay Rays for Myers, the Padres also received catcher Ryan Hanigan and minor league pitchers Gerardo Reyes and Jose Castillo.
During this winter under new general manager, A.J. Preller, the Padres have also added All-Star catcher, Derek Norris and right-handers Seth Streich, Josh Johnson and Brandon Morrow.
