Padres Agree To Deal With Veteran Left-Hander Drew Pomeranz
By Michael Luciano
The San Diego Padres are on a mission this offseason, as they need to get some pitching to help support an exciting core led by Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. With that in mind, AJ Preller has decided to grab a couple former Milwaukee Brewers to help with that task.
After acquiring Brewers starter Zach Davies in a trade that sent prospect Luis Urias the other way, San Diego agreed to a deal with veteran southpaw Drew Pomeranz, who ended last season as a reliever in Milwaukee.
#Padres in agreement with free-agent reliever Drew Pomeranz, pending physical, sources tell The Athletic.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) November 27, 2019
This will be Pomeranz's second stint as a Padre, as he earned an All-Star selection in 2016 after posting an 8-4 record with a 2.47 ERA in 17 starts before being dealt to the Boston Red Sox ahead of the trade deadline.
Pomeranz went 17-6 in 2017, but his 6.08 ERA in 2018 prompted Boston to let him go to San Francisco in the offseason. After an inconsistent run as a starter, Pomeranz found new life in the Milwaukee bullpen, putting up a 2.39 ERA and helping the Brewers sneak into the playoffs.
Drew Pomeranz in 25 games with the Brewers in 2019:
— Dan (@DKeri_) November 27, 2019
2.39 ERA, 0.911 WHIP, 15.4 K/9, 5.63 K/BB ratio.
If the Padres expect Pomeranz to come in and be a game-changer in their starting rotation, they're going to be extremely disappointed. If they're looking for a shutdown lefty out of the bullpen to serve as the bridge to Kirby Yates, however, Pomeranz might be the best man for the job on the MLB free agent market.