The Padres Should Steal This Free Agent Away From the Dodgers

A furious 34-19 start saw the 2021 San Diego Padres just 0.5 games back in the NL West standings when the calendar turned to June. Unfortunate injuries devastated San Diego's promising season and led to a disappointing 79-83 record and third-place finish.

San Diego has the core of its roster in place, headlined by superstar shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. (even if he starts the season a bit late) and Joe Musgrove. But, it's clear this team needs some depth amidst last year's injury bug and the departure of Mark Melancon leaves a big hole in the bullpen.

That's exactly why the Padres need to steal Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen in free agency.

Padres Free Agency

The fit just seems to perfect. Melancon is now an Arizona Diamondback and that leaves 39 saves, 53 games finished and a 2.23 ERA up for grabs.

San Diego only has about $20 million in luxury cap space available, but that's more than the Dodgers can say sitting $21.4 million over the threshold. Los Angeles may not care so much about staying over, but there's a distinct possibility Jansen is no longer pitching for the Dodgers this season.

He's naturally fits a big hole left by Melancon and proved last year that age hasn't gotten the best of him. At 33, Jansen put together an impressive campaign with 38 saves, 52 games finished and a 2.22 ERA. Sticking it to the Dodgers makes this move that much sweeter.

As it stands, the Padres hold +1400 odds (T-8th) to win the World Series on FanDuel Sportsbook.

Adam Taylor McKillop is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Adam Taylor also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username atmckillop. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.