A Trade Prediction For Dylan Cease That Must Happen ASAP

While the San Diego Padres sit atop the NL West Division, it's shocking to still hear Dylan Cease's name continue to be on the rumor mill. The Friars' hurler has an ugly 6.64 ERA through his first four starts, but most of that damage came in one game, when he was blown up for nine earned runs in four innings by the Athletics. In his other three starts (before Sunday night's game), he's only allowed six runs total.

But the Padres have been said to be looking to cut costs, and a trade of Cease has been speculated since the end of last season.

So which team should be all-in on the former Cy Young runner-up?

According to Jim Bowden, former MLB GM and now insider and writer for The Athletic, he has a proposed trade that would seem to make a lot of sense:

Baltimore Orioles Receive:

Dylan Cease

San Diego Padres receive:

3B/1B Coby Mayo
LHP Cade Povich

The Orioles, who were expected to be a team in contention for the AL East crown, find themselves in 4th place at 9-12. And the culprit? Pitching. They are currently dead last in all of baseball in team ERA at 5.43, and in opponents' batting average, at .296.

Plus, they just received more bad news on young starter Grayson Rodriguez, who is going for second opinions on his sore shoulder after an MRI.

The Orioles need to make a move like this ASAP.

As for the Padres, they'd be getting a stud in Mayo. The 6'4" power hitter is the Orioles' No. 2 prospect, and 13th in all of baseball. He's destroyed minor league pitching, with a .917 OPS over five seasons.

Povich, a lefty, was the Orioles' No. 9 prospect at this time last year, though he has struggled in his short time in the majors since then. He's still young, and had a 2.35 ERA through his first 10 outings at Triple-A last season, striking out 75 in 56 2/3 innings.

But in the end, it remains to be seen if the Padres, with a 15-6 start to the season and a good chance at being a playoff contender, would risk trading one of their top starters in Cease.