The San Diego Padres are listening to trade offers for four pitchers in their organization, per The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal.

The circumstances were, uh, just a little bit different five years ago when then-Padres manager Jayce Tingler called on little-known utility player Jake Cronenworth as a pinch-runner in a game against the Diamondbacks.

A year later, the Padres find themselves in slightly better standing. They are 55-49, one game ahead of their 54-50 record last July 24. They are also entering dangerous territory. The wins and losses tell a story of year-over-year improvement. The recent trend lines do not.

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The San Diego Padres could afford to add another pitcher to their roster at the trade deadline, and Kansas City Royals ace Seth Lugo is the perfect option.

Padres Daily: Not the usual loss; Pivetta doesn’t back off; nothing to show (Kevin Acee, SD U-T) In muddy Padres rotation picture, Michael King appears to be on his way back (Kevin Acee, SD U-T) Sloppy Padres drop fourth straight in shutout loss to Cardinals (Kevin Acee, SD U-T)

The San Diego Padres started their current road trip versus the Washington Nationals, Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals with a lead over the San Francisco Giants and Cardinals in the Wild Card race. In fact, on July 21 they were 3.5 games up on the Giants, Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds.