Padres Roster Update: San Diego Protects Two Prospects From Rule-5 Draft

The MLB rostering deadline came and went on Nov. 18, and with it, teams have effectively "finalized' their 40-man rosters prior to the meat and potatoes of the offseason.

There were a number of notable moves made around the league, from the Baltimore Orioles' baffling decision to trade Grayson Rodriguez for Taylor Ward to a record number of free agents accepting the qualifying offer. Perhaps the most shocking thing of all, though, was the San Diego Padres' lack of activity. A.J. Preller's squad selected the contracts of just two prospects -- reliever Garrett Hawkins and starting pitcher Miguel Mendez -- to protect them from the Rule-5 Draft, which was expected. Otherwise, the Padres were eerily silent during a busy day on the MLB calendar.

Starting with Mendez, the 23-year-old ranks 12th on Padres Mission's Top 20 list, and other outlets are even higher on his upside. He finished the 2025 season in Double-A after starting with (for the third straight year) Lake Elsinore, and his overall stats were a beauty to behold: In 95.0 innings, he paired a 3.22 ERA and 3.86 FIP with a 29.4% strikeout rate and .208 batting average allowed.

The right-hander was at his best in High-A Fort Wayne, logging a 1.32 ERA (3.33 FIP) across 12 starts. He allowed just three home runs and 24 walks over 61 1/3 innings, showing a newfound proclivity to pitch to contact effectively. His results were a little overblown (3.71 xFIP) thanks to a humongous 89.7% left-on-base rate, but the strides he made in his development were apparent. Mendez did struggle in his cup of coffee at Double-A to end the season -- he ran an 8.06 ERA and 5.91 FIP that were inflated because of a problematic walk rate (15.9%) -- but he was a lock to be added to the 40-man roster. He could start the 2026 season at Triple-A and make his debut around the mid-season point, depending on the state of the major-league rotation.

As for Hawkins, the 25-year-old doesn't rank on Padres Mission's top prospect list, though he does rank 13th in the system over at FanGraphs. That's not the biggest compliment in the world (the Padres' farm system is the worst in the league), but it is a sign that the now-protected reliever could be in line for a bullpen job come Opening Day.

The right-handed reliever missed the 2024 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, and like Mendez, finished the most recent campaign in San Antonio. His 1.50 ERA and 2.22 FIP were promising on their own, but his 35.1% strikeout rate and 0.15 home runs allowed per nine innings (HR/9) really paint the picture of his dominance. A true relief prospect at this point (he hasn't started on a full-time basis since 2022), Hawkins recorded 10 saves in 2025 and looks destined for a role as a middle reliever in the Padres' stacked bullpen. If Mason Miller or Adrian Morejon actually transition back to the rotation, look for Hawkins to grab one of their jobs in spring training.

Beyond those two players, the Padres left other Rule-5-eligible players unprotected, including the likes of Jagger Haynes and Francis Pena. The 40-man roster now stands at 36, a sign that the team may be gearing up for a flurry of transactions in the coming weeks. However, their silence during an otherwise busy day could also point to some consternation within the front office while wrestling with an ownership group plotting a sale and rumored budget constraints.

The offseason has only just begun, but save for a lowkey re-signing of swingman Kyle Hart, the Padres have mostly sat out the early-bird proceedings. Where they go from here is anyone's guess.