7 last-minute thoughts before the Deadline

This story was excerpted from AJ Cassavell’s Padres Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

The Padres picked quite a weekend to play their best series of the season.

After sweeping the first-place Rangers, San Diego opens a three-game set in Colorado tonight with the Trade Deadline looming at 3 p.m. PT Tuesday. Here are seven last-minute thoughts on what lies ahead:

1. Things may have changed over the weekend. Maybe it's not prudent to base your Deadline strategy on three games when the 103 prior data points aren't nearly as rosy. But the Padres are surely considering the merits of buying more than they were three days ago. And you know what? That's not foolish. Their postseason odds are better now than they were on Thursday. Maybe, just maybe, this is the beginning of that run they've been predicting.

2. Whatever happens, the Padres cannot afford to stand pat. No matter how staunchly the players believe this is a playoff-caliber roster, there's a reason they are two games below .500. If, indeed, the Padres eschew the idea of selling, then they need to buy. They don't need to buy big. But they need another bat -- at least one. And they need some measure of pitching depth.

3. Selling has to be tempting though. In the aftermath of the Padres' series loss to the Pirates this week, news broke that the White Sox had acquired two strong prospects from the Angels for Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez. If that's the price for a middle-of-the-rotation starter and a middle-innings reliever, imagine what the price is for Blake Snell and Josh Hader. Snell is a Cy Young favorite. Hader might be the best closer in baseball. Both are free agents-to-be. But ...

4. Both Snell and Hader really want to stay. They spoke after Sunday's game, and both expressed how badly they want to remain in San Diego to see this through. The Padres are 15-9 this month, finally playing like the contenders they believe they are. Snell noted that he hoped the recent surge might convince the front office to buy. Hader said he just wants to see what the current group is able to accomplish. After nailing down his 25th save on Sunday, Hader said, "I love it here, I love this team, and I’d love to stay." Then again ...

5. If the Padres sell, can the players really complain about it? It certainly wouldn't be unreasonable for a team in the Padres' position to trade expiring contracts. They're as close to the Mets as they are to any team ahead of them in the Wild Card standings, and the Mets began their sell-off days ago.

6. The impact of these decisions on the clubhouse is worth considering. I thought Joe Musgrove summed it up well when I spoke with him yesterday. He said: "If we sell off guys, that's a very clear message. But it's not like we've put ourselves in a position to, like, have to buy. If they hang onto guys or if we even go add guys, that's just more positive reinforcement for us, them showing that they really believe in this group and that they haven't given up on it yet."

7. I think the Padres buy. Not based on much inside info. The Padres' front office has been tight-lipped. But with the highest payroll in franchise history (by far) and a number of superstars in their primes, the Padres are already somewhat pot-committed. Here's guessing they make a run at it. Here's guessing they add a left-handed bat and a back-of-the-rotation starter (without sacrificing any high-end prospects).