Chris Young (P)

According to ESPN and the New York Post, the New York Mets are deep in talks with hurler Chris Young.

According to MLB Trade Rumors the Mets are are pursuing starting pitcher Chris Young (formerly of the San Diego Padres).  The deal will in all likelihood be for one year, laden with incentives. The Mets are looking to add depth to a rotation which will not feature Johan Santana for a good chunk of the year.  Right now the Mets starting rotation features R.A. Dickey, Mike Pelfrey and Jon Niese.  

One more.

That's all the San Diego Padres can afford before their off season officially begins a lot sooner than they thought it would.

Looking back to the end of August, the Padres had what most would consider a big lead in the National League West over the San Francisco Giants. Fast forward one month, and not only is their lead gone but the deficit has reached its breaking point after losing 22 of their last 34 games.

Last Night Rewind

The San Diego Padres are four games up on the San Francisco Giants in the National League's Western Division and they're doing it all without second baseman David Eckstein and right-hander Chris Young.

So far, the Padres have been able to stem the tide without Eckstein and have pitched better than most thought without their ace. Just when it looked like they might be without both players until deep into September, they might get both back sooner than anyone thought.

The San Diego Padres are not only in first place in the National League West at 31-20, but they also have the best record in the National League by a full game over the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals.

It's not exactly where most people and experts thought they would be at this point in the season. Yet, the Padres have gone from potential cellar dwellers and "sellers" at the trade deadline to buyers and possibly being able to take on salary above their $38 million payroll.

If you ask any San Diego Padre fan on the streets of San Diego, most would tell you they don't want to see the last of their fan favorites leave their city. They don't want the team to trade an All-Star, their leading offensive player, and a Gold Glove first baseman.

But, the San Diego Padres may not have much of a choice but to do just that, especially if that aforementioned first baseman is looking for the kind of money that one Mark Teixeira got from the Yankees. I'm speaking of course about long time Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez.

It’s been a long and winding road for the San Diego Padres’ Chris Young.  He is just two years removed from posting a 3.12 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over 30 starts. 

In the subsequent two seasons, he’s made a total of 32 starts thanks to a slew of injuries:

• In 2008, he missed time after taking a line drive off the bat of Albert Pujols to the face (he would spend more time on the DL later in the year).

• His 2009 season ended in mid-June, ultimately requiring surgery for a torn labrum

The San Diego Padres have seemingly been the joke of the NL West.

Even in the years they ended the season as the Western Division champions, there were still people who didn't take the Padres or the NL West seriously. Some even said the Padres shouldn't be allowed in the playoffs due to how weak the division was.

But in 2010, all that has changed. The entire division, from top to bottom, has become both younger and stronger. 

Before we get to Mr. Scruggs' comments during his "Newy and Richie" show on 105.3 FM in Dallas this morning, let me start by saying that I'm a big fan of Newy's and a loyal listener to his show.

That being said, I grew up as a San Diego Padre fan and lived in Southern California for almost eight years of my life. I spent a lot of Sunday afternoons at Petco Park watching the Padres and guys like Trevor Hoffman, Jake Peavy, and Adrian Gonzalez.