Plenty of Youth Added to New-Look Padres Prospect Rankings

[Seth Stohs]

AJ Preller and the Padres went all-in at the trade deadline, making several key moves in an attempt to compete with the Dodgers in the NL West and in the playoffs. It did come at a cost. To acquire so many years of Mason Miller, the Padres included Leo De Vries, a top three prospect in all of baseball. They also added right-handed pitchers Henry Baez and Braden Nett who were Top 20 Padres prospects and performed really well. 

They needed to do something, anything to improve their catching situation. They acquired Freddy Fermin from the Royals but had to include Top 20 prospect Ryan Bergert, who has already done well in the big leagues for Kansas City. 

They added some thump to their lineup with the addition of 1B/DH Ryan O’Hearn and outfielder Ramon Laureano. They gave up six players to get those two players including three of their Top 20 prospects. Lefty Boston Bateman and shortstop Cobb Hightower were drafted in 2024 out of high school and already showing improvements in Lake Elsinore this year. Tyson Neighbors is another 2024 draft pick, though he is a hard-throwing college reliever who is already at Double-A. 

With at least six of our Top 20 Padres prospects leaving the organization, you can understand a bit of an overhaul in our updated prospect rankings. 

Change at the Top
Well, trading one of the best prospects in baseball means that we need a new #1 prospect. Not only did lefty Kash Mayfield move up, but he’s been pitching really, really well of late. It’s what you would hope to see from a high school kid drafted high just one year ago. He is currently 1-4 with a 2.57 ERA. In 59 1/3 innings, he has 28 walks, but he also had 95 strikeouts. He’s 6-4, lanky, and certainly looks the part of Future Ace.   

Lost Season Doesn’t Alter Fan Hopes
The 2025 season has been completely lost by Ethan Salas, yet he sits in the number two spot in our rankings. A stress reaction in his back due to overuse can’t be fun. It’s been slow to heal, but we all have to remember that even though we've known about Salas for several years, he only turned 19 in June. Hopefully he will be able to get some games in during the Arizona Fall League. 

Back to School
Kids across the country are now back at school. In the younger grades, there are lots of arts and crafts. Late in high school, in college or trade schools, students are honing their craft as they look to cruise into adulthood. 

That was just a terrible lead-in to say that 2025 first-round pick Kruz Schoolcraft comes in as the Padres number three prospect. The Padres drafted the 6-8 southpaw as a pitcher. In high school, he was an All-American talent with his arm and with the bat. He has yet to make his professional debut which is not surprising. 

Did You Know: Kruz Schoolcraft was the 25th overall pick in the 2025 MLB draft. The Padres selected lefty Kash Mayfield with the 25th overall pick in 2024.   

The Holdovers (Upper Levels)
Tirso Ornelas missed a couple of months with injury, but he returned recently and has shown power and speed to make the 25-year-old intriguing.  He has big-league time. So does Bradgely Rodriguez who was called up directly from Double-A earlier this season. He’s spent most of his time in El Paso since then. 

Francis Pena remains in our Top 20. The 24-year-old has pitched out of the bullpen his entire career. Zero starts. It might be telling as it relates to organizational prospect rankings that the Padres have so many relievers in the Top 20. 

Lefty Jagger Haynes and first baseman Romeo Sanabria remain at Double-A San Antonio. 

What’s Your Vector, Victor?
Victor Lizarraga signed with the Padres as an undrafted free agent in March of 2021. Lsat year, he was an intriguing 20-year-old already at Double A. He returned to San Antonio this season and has taken a step backwards. More walks. Less strikeouts. Higher ERA. 

But as I wrote for Ethan Salas, we have to remember that Lizarraga is just 21, and they can continue to be patient with him. He certainly has had some moments of positive performances, especially in the second half. 

Young Holdovers
Humberto Cruz is 18 and has a ton of potential. Don’t look at his statistics. If you do, you will not be excited. Instead, read the scouting reports of what he could become. That’s part of this prospect ranking thing. It isn’t about his numbers now but try to project what he could be when he is 23 or 25. Just a few weeks ago, Cruz underwent surgery to repair his UCL with an internal brace. With that procedure, the timeline for return is faster than normal Tommy John surgery, but certainly no reason to rush him.   

Kale Fountain was another draft pick from 2024 out of high school in Nebraska. Already 20, he made his pro debut this year. At 6-5 and 225 pounds, he is a first baseman with a ton of power potential. It hasn’t really shown in games yet this year in the ACL or at Lake Elsinore, but that will be the key thing to watch as he advances. 

The Newbies
Ryan Wideman - The Padres selected Wideman in the third round of July’s draft. Born in Spain, he grew up in Georgia and was drafted out of Western Kentucky after a couple of years in junior college. This season, he hit .398/.466/.652 (1.118) with 20 doubles, six triples, 10 homers. He also stole 45 bases. A well-rounded player, he is certainly intriguing. He began his career with Lake Elsinore. 

Miguel Mendez - The 23-year-old signed with the Padres in February of 2021 from the Dominican Republic. This season, he made three appearances at Lake Elsinore. He quickly moved up to Fort Wayne. In 12 starts, he went 7-3 with a 1.32 ERA. He moved up to San Antonio in August. In his first start, he went six innings and gave up just one hit. He walked four, but he struck out 11 batters! It’s been a bit of a struggle since then, but he’s certainly put himself on the prospect map. 

Jorge Quintana - The 18-year-old from Venezuela came to the Padres at the trade deadline with Nestor Cortes. He had hit .264/.349/.403 (.752) with 13 doubles, three triples, three homers, and 19 stolen bases in 50 games with the ACL Brewers. Following the trade, the Padres sent the infielder to Lake Elsinore. In 22 games, he’s hit just .197 with three doubles and a homer. In his most recent game (9/3), he hit his first home run. The Brewers signed him in January of 2024 for a $1.7 million signing bonus. He is a terrific athlete that many believe can stay at shortstop. 

Deivid Coronil - The Padres signed Coronil from Venezuela in January 2025 and gave him a $900,000 signing bonus. He’s already 6-3, and scouts believe he can be a plus-plus defensive shortstop. He debuted with 45 games in the DSL. He hit just .186/.327/.214 (.542) with two doubles and a triple. He was 8-for-8 in steal attempts. He’s very young, and has a lot of growing to do, strength to be gained, but he is certainly intriguing at this phase. 

Bryan Balzer - Balzer signed out of Japan in January of 2023. Instead of playing in the NPB, he signed in the States. However, soon after signing, he had Tommy John surgery. In 2024, he made six appearances in the ACL. Upon his return, he was throwing his fastball between 96 and 100 mph. His sinker sits 93-94 mph. He also has shown the makings of a solid changeup and slider/sweeper. This season in Lake Elsinore, he has pitched in 16 games and 50 innings. He is 1-6 with a 7.92 ERA and has 28 walks to go with 49 strikeouts. The upside is tremendous. 

Michael Salina - Another member of the Padres 2025 draft class, Salina was the team’s fourth-round pick out of St. Bonaventure. The Rochester, NY, native spent a year at George Mason before spending two seasons with the Bonnies. As a starter, he was touching 102 mph with his fastball and has a terrific slider. Unfortunately, he was limited to just four games in 2025 and had Tommy John surgery in April. That means he won’t pitch until the middle or late in 2026. 

How do you feel about the Padres minor league system? Is this how you would rank these prospects? Who is missing from this list? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. 

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