Today, two bitter rivals in the National League West division, the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers, made a trade.
The trade sent first baseman and outfielder Matt Beaty from the Dodgers to the Padres in exchange for right-handed pitching prospect River Ryan.
It’s quite rare to see two division rivals make trades, but that is exactly what we got today with the Dodgers and Padres.
New Padres manager Bob Melvin is pretty psyched about having Beaty on his team, praising him for his versatility and the ability to take solid professional at-bats as well as get on base.
“He’s a professional at-bat,” Bob Melvin said of Beaty. “He’s got a high on-base percentage, the kind of guy that takes a lot of pitches. Could see him as a pinch-hitter potentially. Can play a little outfield, a little first base, so he’s got some versatility there.”
— AJ Cassavell (@AJCassavell) March 28, 2022
Early Praise
It’s always good to see a manager hyping up a new player.
Melvin is correct in his approximation of Beaty.
Beaty has a career .262 average and an OPS of .758.
He hit seven home runs and drove in 40 while hitting .270 for the Dodgers in 2021.
Beaty is somebody who will grind out an at-bat and can play multiple positions on the field.
He was recently designated for assignment by Los Angeles.
Now he has an opportunity to prove himself in San Diego
Perhaps he’s someone San Diego can use as a designated hitter from time to time.
It’s possible we could see him platoon with the newly acquired Luke Voit at that spot.
That platoon could also give San Diego some pop in the lineup to make up for the loss of Fernando Tatis Jr., who suffered a wrist injury in a motorcycle accident this past offseason and will miss three months recovering from surgery.
We’ll see what Beaty can do for the Padres in 2022.
Opening Day is right around the corner, and Beaty has a chance to prove himself.
NEXT: Padres Make A Rare Trade With A Division Rival
