Source: Padres nearing deal to acquire Will Middlebrooks
The San Diego Padres are nearing an agreement to deal just-acquired catcher Ryan Hanigan to the Boston Red Sox for third baseman Will Middlebrooks, a source familiar with the deal told Yahoo Sports, continuing the flurry of trades that has reshaped the team.
Middlebrooks, 26, struggled in Boston last season and eventually lost his job but fits the archetype of player targeted by new Padres general manager A.J. Preller: buy-low, right-handed hitter.
Hanigan, 34, is not officially a Padre yet, with the three-team, 11-player deal that sent him and Wil Myers to San Diego still in its final stages. Following a trade for catcher Derek Norris on Thursday, the Padres were set at catcher and could afford to give up Hanigan to fill a hole on the left side of their infield.
In Boston, Hanigan would likely share time with young Christian Vasquez and gives the Red Sox flexibility to keep top prospect Blake Swihart in the minor leagues or trade him.
Once the trade is official, the Padres will have acquired outfielders Justin Upton, Matt Kemp and Wil Myers, Norris and Middlebrooks – all right-handed hitters who have flashed 25-plus home run potential.
