Padres Acquire Robbie Ray from Giants
The San Diego Padres are finalizing a trade to acquire veteran left-hander Robbie Ray from the San Francisco Giants, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. As part of the deal, the Giants are expected to receive minor league right-hander Miguel Mendez and minor league shortstop Joniel Hernandez, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
The two clubs will split the roughly $7.66 million remaining on Ray’s 2026 salary, as well as his $1 million trade assignment bonus, leaving each team responsible for approximately $4.33 million through the end of the season.
Ray, 34, gives San Diego a proven veteran for a rotation that has struggled to find consistency this year. He is in the final season of the five-year, $115 million contract he signed with the Seattle Mariners after capturing the 2021 American League Cy Young Award. Seattle later dealt him to San Francisco during the 2023-24 offseason while he was recovering from Tommy John surgery.
While Ray is no longer generating strikeouts at the elite level he once did, he has remained highly effective by limiting hard contact and preventing runs. Over 122⅔ innings this season, he has posted an impressive 3.08 ERA. His 20.9% strikeout rate and 11.1% walk rate are less dominant than in previous years, but he has been one of baseball’s hottest pitchers in recent weeks. During his last seven starts, Ray has compiled a remarkable 1.09 ERA across 49⅓ innings. Since returning from Tommy John surgery late in 2024, he has recorded a 3.54 ERA over 335⅔ innings.
San Diego is acquiring Ray as a rental for the remainder of the season. Given the organization’s limited farm system, landing a controllable frontline starter likely would have been difficult. Ray is expected to join Michael King and Walker Buehler atop the Padres’ current rotation.
The Padres have relied heavily on their outstanding bullpen and extended relief appearances from veterans Germán Márquez and Griffin Canning while waiting for Joe Musgrove and Nick Pivetta to complete their rehab assignments. Both injured starters are expected back later this month if their recoveries continue as planned. Once healthy, a rotation featuring King, Ray, Musgrove, Pivetta, and Buehler would represent San Diego’s strongest starting staff of the season.
Financially, the trade has minimal long-term impact for the Giants. By moving Ray, San Francisco saves approximately $3.83 million in payroll, though the club already sits comfortably below the luxury tax threshold, making the transaction more of a modest cost-saving move than a significant financial decision.
For the Padres, however, the acquisition further increases their luxury tax payroll. Entering the deal, San Diego was already roughly $17 million above the competitive balance tax threshold. Adding Ray’s remaining salary and the associated tax penalty pushes the club close to the second tax tier. As a repeat luxury tax payer, the Padres will owe about $1.3 million in additional tax on Ray’s salary, and any further payroll additions this season would be taxed at a 42% rate under MLB’s escalating luxury tax system.
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