MLB Trade Rumors states that the Padres are only willing to assume 25% or so of Meyers salary in a Betts trade. Thus, the Red Sox would need to pick up $15 mil/year or so over 3 years; about $45 mil.
While I generally like the approach of trading a player and absorbing salary in return if it results in a significant boost in young talent (quality of the prospects obtained), $45 mil is a lot of payroll space, even when you consider how much payroll you off-loaded in moving Marte.
In short, the approach is right, but the Padres may not be open to reasonable negotiations.
Thinking out of the box
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