The Padres on Friday unloaded Matt Carpenter and most of his salary, further clearing the way to eventually make some necessary roster moves.

The 38-year-old Carpenter was shipped with left-handed reliever Ray Kerr and $1.5 million to the Atlanta Braves for outfielder Drew Campbell.

The Padres saved almost $5 million with the move, which comes a little more than a week after they saved an estimated $30 million or more by trading Juan Soto and Trent Grisham to the Yankees.

“Just having some dollar flexibility,” Padres President of Baseball Operations A.J. Preller said. “Obviously, you’ve got to be able to spend on players. Hopefully in the next couple weeks, whether it’s trade or free agent, when the market kind of stabilizes, guys get to January and they’re looking for places to play, there might be some good buys out there.”

FanGraphs estimates the Padres payroll is at $151 million for 2024. With a goal of being below $200 million when the season starts, the Padres still have to add at least two starting pitchers, two outfielders and at least a couple relievers.

Carpenter, who played first base and served as designated hitter, exercised a $5.5 million player option in November after finishing one of the worst seasons of his career. He hit .176/.322/.319 and was the only player continuously on a big-league roster to go without appearing in a game between July 25 to Aug. 14.

The money Carpenter is due in 2024 was the reason the Padres didn’t cut him then in favor of using the roster spot on a depth piece for a playoff push that fell short last season.

Carpenter counts $6 million toward the Competitive Balance Tax payroll. The Padres’ CBT number is approximately $203 million. They would incur a 50 percent tax on anything over $237 million.

To unload Carpenter, the Padres also gave up one of four left-handers on the 40-man roster in Kerr, a 29-year-old rookie who flirts with triple-digit heat but has a 5.06 ERA in 32 innings so far in the majors. Kerr also saved 10 games while striking out 42 batters in 36 innings (2.25 ERA) at Triple-A El Paso in 2023.

The trade frees up two more 40-man roster spots.

The 26-year-old Campbell has yet to play above Double-A. A 23^rd-round pick out of Louisville in 2019, Campbell hit .254/.307/.404 with nine homers and 10 steals in 78 games in the Southern League. He is likely organizational depth at a thin position. The Padres have only two outfielders — Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jose Azocar — on the 40-man roster at the moment.

The Padres currently have 32 players on their 40-man roster.