Lucky or Not, Bryce Johnson Emerging as Key Bench Component for Padres

It sort of got lost in the shuffle of the absence of production in left field and behind the plate prior to the trade deadline, but the San Diego Padres have failed to get much of anything out of their bench in 2025. It's hardly a surprise, of course. 

Strapped for cash last winter, the Padres attempted to fill much of their bench with Quadruple-A types and spring training non-roster invitees. That process ultimately, and objectively, failed. The list of players they've attempted to press into bench roles this year is... extensive. Jason Heyward, Oscar González, Connor Joe, Mason McCoy, Brandon Lockridge, Tirso Ornelas, Yuli Gurriel, Trenton Brooks, and Tyler Wade were all players manning a reserve role in San Diego this season at one point or another.

Of that group, none of the 10 remain on the active roster, and only two (Ornelas & McCoy) remain on the 40-man roster. Most are out of the organization entirely. Jose Iglesias is the only bench player who has survived the turnover to date. 

A quick look at the production is an easy indicator as to why. Tyler Wade's 69 wRC+ was the highest among those who have logged any time at the major league level, with Lockridge's 49 topping the remainder of the group of now-former bench guys. Iglesias' presence as a versatile infielder and resident vibes guy has allowed him to hang around through his own struggles. 

The post-deadline Padres look a little bit different. Acquisitions of Ryan O'Hearn and Ramón Laureano have allowed Mike Shildt to slide Gavin Sheets into more of a reserve role, strengthening the bench group somewhat organically. Another factor in improving the reserve group? The emergence of Bryce Johnson as a solid bench contributor. 

Johnson isn't a new face in the Padres organization; he was non-tendered after the 2024 season before signing a minor league deal with Pittsburgh last winter. The Padres brought him back in a trade for catcher Brett Sullivan back in April before his selection to the active roster in mid-June. Through 50 plate appearances, the Padres have at least some reason to be encouraged as to the value he can provide as a bench piece. 

Everything with Johnson is a small sample, which is an important caveat. So, too, is the amount of luck he's experienced through just 50 plate appearances. Grain of salt and all that. But you're not going to fight back too much against a .333/.375/.400 line and 125 wRC+ quite yet, considering what came before him among 2025 backups. There isn't much power to speak of (.067 ISO), but Johnson has proven capable on the defensive side and on the basepaths, which is exactly what you want when you're talking fourth outfielder.

The skill set is important. Because we're not expecting the overall production from Johnson to be much better than that of someone like Lockridge, but he's already graded as the team's sixth-best baserunner among the 24 players we've seen appear on offense (per FanGraphs BsR metric), has three steals, and has posted +1 Outs Above Average as a defensive outfielder. Those are the areas where you want to see a player like Johnson succeed. 

What he's giving them right now with the bat in his hands is something of a bonus. It's heavily buoyed by a .500 batting average on balls in play, but his 34.6 line drive percentage is the highest on the team. You're going to continue to get some good luck when you're creating that type of contact. His attack angle, at nine degrees on average, should help him continue to get balls in play with that sort of trajectory. That's an improvement from his predecessor in Lockridge, whose much shallower attack angle had him putting the ball on the ground at a near-60-percent clip. That's a much more difficult trend to overcome.

Not that Johnson is smacking the ball around the field (21.9 Hard-Hit%), but the Padres don't necessarily need him to do a whole lot more than he's doing. Even if the luck disappears (and it will), the nature of his swing should allow him to retain some value from the types of balls he puts into play. Combine it with the defense and baserunning components he adds, and you're talking about legitimate value in an area of the roster that the team has entirely lacked this year. 

Of course, we're not talking about Bryce Johnson as anything more than a bench bat. There isn't anything to suggest he's due for more playing time or could prove to be a starting option in left field at some point in the future. He merely brings exactly what he needs. Even upon the inevitable statistical regression, the on-paper element of Johnson as a player on this roster should help him to remain an important part of a bench sorely in need of him.