The Jedd Gyorko/Jon Jay swap looks a bit like a salary dump, and perhaps a trade of two disappointing players, but it allows each club to achieve something important: cost savings for the San Diego Padres, and moving a surplus player to fill a critical bench spot for the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Padres' main get in this trade is the salary commitment they're subtracting; Gyorko's contract extension, handed out by the previous regime in April 2014, has been an unmitigated disaster for the team, as he has hit .233/.292/.369 in 853 plate appearances since signing the deal.