The San Diego Padres are reportedly shopping Kyle Blanks, and the veteran first baseman/outfielder could find a new home soon, multiple reports indicated.
Blanks, who is a career .228 hitter with 28 HR and 98 RBI in six seasons, has not earned a lot of playing time this season, appearing in only five games, and hitting just .200 with no homerun and RBI.
Blanks' future with the Padres remains uncertain at this point, especially now that Carlos Quentin is back in the lineup after missing San Diego's first 39 games this season due to a bone bruise in his left knee.
With Quentin back in action, Blanks will be the odd man out for San Diego. Reports indicated that the Padres are planning to send Blanks to Triple A, but most MLB analysts believe that the six-year veteran could be traded soon.
According to Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish, the Oakland Athletics is the most likely landing spot for Blanks as sources indicated that the A's are in talks with the Padres about a potential trade.
Cotillo added, though, that it is still unknown at this point how close the two teams are to finalizing a deal, but he revealed that the Athletics are planning to give up outfielder Jake Goebbert in the trade.
"One player that could be involved in talks is Athletics' outfielder Jake Goebbert, according to a baseball source. Goebbert, who is currently at Triple-A Sacramento, has appeared in 31 of the team's 37 games so far this season, but was curiously kept out of the lineup on Monday night," Cotillo wrote.
It is also unclear what Blanks' role will be when he moves to Oakland, considering the fact that the Athletics have Yoenis Cespedes, Coco Crisp, and Josh Reddick playing on the outfield, and also have Craig Gentry as their fourth outfielder.
According to CSN Bay Area MLB analyst Joe Stiglich, the Athletics view Blanks as the perfect right-handed complement to Brandon Moss or as outfield depth. If a trade is finalized, Stiglich also added that Blanks could be sent down to the minors, and get called up later in the season.
"The A's could stash Blanks away in the minors in the hopes that the 6-foot-6, 265-pounder can provide some punch down the road, much like Moss did when he was initially called up by Oakland in 2012," Stiglich wrote.
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