It makes more sense for the Padres to let the market play out for CC Sabathia, Derek Lowe, and AJ Burnett than to trade Peavy now. He won’t be any less valuable in two months than he is now, and teams tend to get a little more antsy as the season approaches.

From the Braves perspective, it’s always hard giving up prospects, but you have to give something to get something. With all that being said, does Jake Peavy make them a contender for a playoff spot? Probably not, not while the Mets and Phillies are still in their division, along with the upstart Marlins.

The best trade partner for the Padres may well be the Dodgers, who have a very deep farm system and have the talent the Padres are seeking. Maybe they could offer up a package including Matt Kemp and either Chad Billingsley or Clayton Kershaw. It would be a steep price for the Dodgers, but they will need an ace who can anchor that rotation. For the Padres, it would be difficult to part with Peavy within the division, but let’s face it, they are still 3-4 years away from being competitive again. By then, Peavy will be getting close to the end of his contract, and Kemp and Kershaw could well have the advantage over him.

One team not to rule out in this whole mess is the Yankees. It’s possible they could package up Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Austin Jackson, and one or two of their young bullpen arms in a deal. If they miss on Sabathia and the Braves/Dodgers continue to balk at offering quality prospects, the Padres could opt for quantity. It could be the best possible fit for Hughes and Kennedy, as they go to cavernous Petco Park and could become the anchors for the rotation in about 2 years.

I don’t think the Padres should ship Peavy to the Braves without Hanson as part of the deal. The Dodgers would be out of their mind to send Kershaw or Billingsley for Pence because they are both major league-ready and future #1 starters. Kemp maybe, but you’d have to add Scott Elbert and at least 2 other prospects. I like the Pence idea, but the Astros have no need to move a productive player so young and cheap. My guess is that Peavy will go to the Cardinals (Todd, Ransom, Ankiel, Jones) or Angels (Santana, Saunders, Kendrick), but if he breaks down and accepts a trade to the Yankees, the Padres would be crazy not to give him up for a package based around Hughes and Jackson. The Yankees have such a deep farm system that they can basically pick and choose who they’d want from the system and New York would be happy to give it up.