Padres Emerging as 'Sleeper Team' for Tarik Skubal in Free Agency, Says Insider

The San Diego Padres have a well-known need at the top of their starting rotation.

If everyone from the group of Michael King, Casey Mize, Walker Buehler, Nick Pivetta, Robbie Ray and Griffin Canning sign elsewhere in free agency, the middle and back of the rotation could use help, too.

To that end, FanSided's Robert Murray dropped the names of both top-of-the-rotation starters in the 2026-27 free agent class as possible Padres targets: Freddy Peralta and Tarik Skubal.

Both pitchers would help a paper-thin Padres rotation in 2027 and beyond. Peralta, 30, was recently named MVP of the American League Championship Series. After a rocky start to the regular season with the New York Mets, the right-hander went 2-1 with a 2.95 ERA in five postseason games with the AL champion Rays.

And then there's Skubal. The two-time Cy Young Award winner reportedly has interest in returning to Los Angeles after going from the Detroit Tigers to the Dodgers in a blockbuster midseason trade.