Padres Offseason Trade Targets: Carmen Mlodzinski Is An Ideal Arm From An Ideal Trade Partner

One way or another, the San Diego Padres will have some new faces plugged into their starting rotation ahead of the 2027 season. It's unlikely they'll be able to settle all of the virtually empty group via free agency, meaning that trades could be on the horizon. And there's an ideal candidate sitting in the National League Central. 

The Pittsburgh Pirates may very well fancy themselves contenders. They finished 82-80 last season and were in the Wild Card mix for much of the season. It's offense that the Pirates seek, and a general refusal to spend money could result in them being willing to part with some of the pitching depth that they've assembled over the last handful of years. 

Enter Carmen Mlodzinski. 

Mlodzinski has worked as a swingman in each of the last two years for the Pirates. He made 12 starts in each campaign, with 71 appearances to his name overall. In 2026, he posted a 3.95 ERA (3.75 FIP) and decent-enough walk and contact metrics to allow him to remain afloat. His stuff played better in the bullpen, but it's also possible there hasn't been enough of a sample for anyone to make a firm declaration on the type of starter he could be. 

And for what it's worth, Mlodzinski probably agrees. After working as a starter to begin the 2026 season, he was cast off to the bullpen upon the return of Jared Jones. The right-hander didn't take the transition well, requiring a leave-of-absence that landed him on the restricted list for a spell. One imagines that an opportunity to start permanently could be enticing to him.

A pursuit of Mlodzinski would be about raising the floor. He's not a strikeout-reliant pitcher, using a four-seamer and splitter against lefties and working primarily with a four-seamer and sinker against right-handed hitters. He had better groundball rates in each of his three prior seasons with the Bucs (compared to 2026), with that skill set being exactly the kind of arm the Padres should covet for their rotation. It's not all that dissimilar from the reasoning behind a potential Clay Holmes pursuit in free agency. 

What makes Mlodzinski such an attractive trade candidate (beyond the floor raising and the team control through 2029) is how well the two parties link up in a trade. The Pirates have a full rotation and plenty of depth with which to work. They need supplementary offense. Someone like Jake Cronenworth, with an appealing average annual value on his deal and potentially in need of a change of scenery, could offer exactly that. In fact, his name was floated by multiple outlets as recently as last December as a name in which Pittsburgh could have interest. 

While Mlodzinski is still somewhat of an unknown as a starter, his high floor and theoretical symmetry in a deal with Pittsburgh makes him one of the best possible targets for the Padres this offseason. He's the kind of move that plugs in a number four or five starter and leaves plenty of room for other additions.

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