The San Diego Padres came up just short of beating the Los Angeles Dodgers during the 2024 postseason. The Padres were the closest thing the league saw to somebody beating the powerhouse Dodgers during the postseason, as Los Angeles rolled through the New York Mets and New York Yankees in the NLCS and World Series, respectively.

Now the Padres are left with an offseason to improve their roster so they can dethrone the Dodgers in 2025. It’s going to be quite an uphill battle though, as the Dodgers will improve in 2025 simply by getting healthy. Los Angeles will return Shohei Ohtani, Dustin May and Tyler Glasnow to the mound, fully healthy, by opening day.

What can the Padres do to combat this?

Signing Walker Buehler tabbed as Padres ‘Perfect transaction’ this winter

The Padres need to add a starting pitcher to round out the rotation, preferably one with a high ceiling. They already have a loaded pitching staff of Dylan Cease, Yu Darvish, and Michael King. But after watching Joe Musgrove go down with an arm injury during the postseason, San Diego needs to add on, preferably for cheap.

ESPN insider Jeff Passan recently looked into some of the best fits around the league, linking a plethora of different teams to moves that fit their organization. When he got to San Diego, he agreed they needed to add a pitcher, but he picked on in specific: Los Angeles Dodgers World Series hero Walker Buehler.

“Getting Sasaki would alleviate a potential salary crunch, but if that doesn’t happen, and if they can’t line up on a big-name trade, there are enough options in free agency to fill out the rotation properly. One of them, in fact, would need to trek only 120 miles down the 5,” Passan wrote.

Buehler to San Diego would be quite the story. Going from one hated rival to the other in the second biggest rivalry in the entire sport would be quite the villain story. A lot of insiders and experts expect Buehler to end up back in Los Angeles for 2025, but after the Dodgers just inked May to a one-year deal, it’s not looking as likely.

If Buehler does end up elsewhere, the Padres may be the perfect Hollywood ending to this Padres-Dodgers story that’s been carrying on for years now. The righty struggled last year as he recovered from another arm injury, but he found his stride down the stretch, which could bode well for a successful 2025 season.