In January, a report came out that San Diego Padres right-hander Andrew Cashner was drawing interest from the Baltimore Orioles, and now according to another report from MASN, the Orioles are also reportedly interested in right-hander James Shields and right fielder Matt Kemp.
The Padres seemingly have shopped Shields to just about every team that will listen, but teams seem to be hesitant after he allowed 33 home runs last year, a pace that was a career-worst for him.
Also a potential problem is the back-loaded nature of his f0ur-year $75 million contract that he signed prior to last year. The Padres would either have to take less, talent in a deal, or eat some of the money in his contract to get a front-line prospect.
Kemp’s contract, which was carried over from the Dodgers, is also back-loaded, making a deal difficult unless the Padres tend on paying for some of the deal.
Cashner will be a free agent after the 2016 season and the team has been trying to move him since last season around the trade deadline.
The report notes that Shields may be a desirable option for Baltimore because of his experience pitching in the American League East while with the Tampa Bay Rays.
