The Padres entered their weekend series at Dodger Stadium in unfamiliar territory at this juncture of a season -- in first place. They had overturned a nine-game deficit and rode a five-game winning streak into Los Angeles.

As San Diego continues its playoff push, Merrill’s recovery will be closely monitored. The Padres have leaned heavily on their pitching and defense to stay afloat in the division race, and losing one of their most dynamic young players could test their depth down the stretch.

San Diego Padres general manager A.J. Preller has made trades with all but one MLB team during his stint as Padres GM.

If you’re going to win a championship,” Padres general manager A.J. Preller said last month after the Trade Deadline, “you can’t have any weak links.” It’s why Preller made five trades involving 22 players on Deadline day.

The San Diego Padres bandwagon is filling up, just in time for a critical series against the Los Angeles Dodgers with first place in the National League West at stake.

According to MLB Pipeline, the Padres' farm system after such a wild trade deadline ranked dead last in baseball. In the preseason, they ranked 25th, but after a wild deadline, Jim Callis, Sam Dykstra, and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com had an easy time ranking the Padres in last place.

The former top prospect's injury-plagued second stint in San Diego comes to an end. Visit MLB Trade Rumors for more.

Former San Diego Padres No. 1 prospect Leo De Vries is moving up quickly in the Athletics organization, and has been promoted to Double-A after just 17 days wit