Three Teams That Are Perfect Trade Fits for Dylan Cease
With the Padres looking to shed payroll, Cease finds himself on the trade block. So, where could the 29-year-old ace pitch in 2025?
Just one season after being traded from the Chicago White Sox to the San Diego Padres, starter Dylan Cease could soon be on the move again.
With the Padres looking to cut payroll this winter and Cease due to become a free agent for the first time at the end of 2025, trade rumors have circled the 29-year-old for months — so where could he end up?
Originally projected to be a first-round pick in the 2014 MLB draft, Cease suffered a UCL injury that resulted in him falling to the sixth round, where he was selected by the Chicago Cubs.
After undergoing Tommy John surgery, Cease worked his way up from the Cubs’ Rookie-league affiliate to Single-A, and in June 2017, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox — along with Eloy Jiménez, Matt Rose, and Bryant Flete — for pitcher Jose Quintana.
Cease made his major league debut with the White Sox on July 3, 2019, and it didn’t take long for him to make a name for himself in Chicago. He finished 2019 with an average of 9.99 strikeouts per 9 innings (K/9) to mark the highest rate recorded by a rookie with a minimum of 10 starts in franchise history.
A year later, his 97.5 mph average fastball velocity was in the top 3% across MLB, and in 2021, Cease led the AL with 12.28 K/9.
Still, it was his 2022 campaign that really established Cease as an ace.
After allowing one earned run or fewer in 12 consecutive starts from May 29 to July 31, 2022, Cease became the first hurler in White Sox history to win back-to-back Pitcher of the Month Awards in the same season.
Cease ended 2022 with a 14-8 record, posting career-best stats in ERA (2.28), WHIP (1.11), and strikeouts (227). Despite being snubbed from All-Star selections, he finished second in AL Cy Young voting.
In line with the entire White Sox roster, Cease’s stats declined in 2023 — though he still managed 214 strikeouts — and with the team entering a rather brutal rebuild, the right-hander was traded to the Padres before the 2024 season.
In San Diego, Cease’s numbers bounced back to his earlier form, and he ended last year’s campaign with a 14-11 record, 3.47 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and 224 strikeouts, marking his fourth consecutive season having struck out at least 200 batters.
Cease finished fourth in NL Cy Young voting in 2024, only behind Chris Sale, Zack Wheeler, and Paul Skenes, and his no-hitter on July 25 was just the second in Padres history.
Now, Cease could be on the move again.
On December 11, the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reported that San Diego had “received inquiries” about the 29-year-old. Now that the Padres have settled his 2025 salary outside of arbitration at an impressive $13.75 million, Cease may soon be on his way to the fourth organization of his career.
The Padres aren’t likely to have much trouble finding teams interested in adding the Cy Young contender to their roster, though the fact that this is his last year of club control may limit potential suitors to immediate contenders.
With that in mind, here are three teams who are likely to target Cease in a trade this winter.
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are an obvious landing spot for Cease this offseason, especially since they failed to re-sign starter Corbin Burnes.
When Burnes was still on the market after becoming a free agent at the end of 2024, a reunion with the Orioles was possible, but now that he’s signed a six-year, $210 million deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore desperately needs to replace their ace.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported the Orioles’ interest in Cease during the Winter Meetings — before they’d even officially lost Burnes — and on December 31, Bleacher Report’s Zachary Rymer listed Baltimore as a “best fit” for the pitcher in a trade.
Considering the Orioles’ clear need for a top-of-the-rotation arm, their interest in Cease is hardly surprising, especially since his $13.75 million salary confirms he’ll be significantly cheaper than any comparable hurler they’ll find in free agency.
From the Padres’ perspective, the Orioles are an ideal trade partner, too. Over the last few seasons, the Padres have traded away a lot of top prospects to secure their current talent, and as a result, the organization’s farm system has been depleted.
The Orioles, on the other hand, have multiple young hitters in their talent pool — as well as a reputation for developing strong batters — so with the right trade package, they could almost certainly entice the Padres to hand over their ace.
Chicago Cubs
Going into the winter, the Chicago Cubs knew they needed to bolster their pitching before 2025, both in the rotation and the bullpen.
So far, they’ve added Colin Rea, Cody Poteet, Matthew Boyd, and Eli Morgan to the roster, with Rea and Boyd both expected to be utilized as starters. Still, all of the new additions are more depth than showstoppers — at least for now — and acquiring an established ace for the rotation would make winning the NL Central division almost a certainty.
Earlier in the offseason, it was reported that the Cubs were interested in Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki, but with the star having narrowed his list of potential landing spots to the Padres, Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago is no longer in the conversation.
Now, the Cubs need to turn their attention elsewhere, and targeting a reunion with Cease — who they drafted back in 2014 but traded away before he made it to the majors — would make a lot of sense.
On January 8, CBS Sports’ Mike Axisa listed the Cubs as “obvious fits” for Cease, and the fact that their farm system is one of the best in MLB makes them an ideal trade partner for the Padres.
Cease is one of the top starters in baseball and definitely worthy of a strong trade return, so if the Cubs are prepared to put together a package from their robust farm system, perhaps Cease will be on his way back to Chicago very soon.
New York Mets
The New York Mets like to have the best players, and as they proved when they signed slugger Juan Soto to a 15-year, $765 million deal — the largest contract in professional sports history — they’ll spend a lot of money to get them.
So far this winter, the Mets have bolstered their pitching staff by re-signing Sean Manaea and adding Frankie Montas, Griffin Canning, and Clay Holmes, but they could certainly use another ace-caliber arm in the rotation, and Cease would be exactly the sort of player owner Steve Cohen likes to have on his roster.
Having lost Luis Severino and Jose Quintana to free agency at the end of 2024, the Mets’ current rotation relies on Manaea, Montas, Holmes, Kodai Senga, and one of either Canning, David Peterson, or Paul Blackburn. It’s not bad, especially if Senga is able to stay healthy, but there’s no established ace among the group. If the Mets want to take on the NL East, they are going to need to find one.
The Mets were reportedly interested in Burnes before he signed with the Diamondbacks, but now, they need a backup plan. Enter: Cease. Trading for Cease would give the Mets an ace at the top of their rotation, adding a major boost to their pitching staff. Plus, the 29-year-old is in his last year of club control, so next winter, Cohen will be able to lock him down on one of those mega-contracts he loves to hand out.
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