San Diego Padres 2026 Position Analysis: Second Base

There's no mystery surrounding second base in San Diego -- Jake Cronenworth is the Padres' everyday option there. He returned to full-time duty at the position in 2025 after getting a lot of work at first base in 2023 and 2024. He shouldn't be needed at the cold corner in 2026 because Gavin Sheets, Miguel Andujar, Nick Castellanos and others are all available.

Cronenworth's name was attached to trade speculation in the offseason, but it would be difficult for the Padres to deal him. He's in the third year of a seven-year, $80 million contract extension and is entering his age-32 season. His 2.9 fWAR in 2025 represented a marked improvement from his previous two seasons, but it still was just starter-class production.

Offseason signee Sung Mun Song will be the backup to begin the season, assuming he's healthy. He is primarily a third baseman, but he did play a fair amount of second in the KBO -- 194 games (149 starts) over nine seasons. Holdovers Mason McCoy and Will Wagner entered the final stages of spring training as the Triple-A reinforcements. 

Padres Second Basemen At A Glance

Starter: Jake Cronenworth
Backup: Sung Mun Song
Depth: Mason McCoy, Will Wagner
Prospect: Marcos Castanon

Padres' fWAR Ranking Last Year: 13th out of 30
Padres' fWAR Projection This Year: 19th out of 30 

The Good

Cronenworth will contribute at the plate against all pitching. The lefty swinger's platoon splits last year were nearly identical: a 118 wRC+ and .334 wOBA against right-handers vs. a 116 wRC+ and .331 wOBA against left-handers. His strikeout rate against lefties was two points lower than his K rate vs. righties (19.4 percent to 21.4 percent). His plate discipline led to a career-high 13.4 percent walk rate.

Song, 29, is coming off two huge offensive seasons in the KBO and has displayed some power in his first MLB spring training. Second base will be one of his positions as he fills a utility role.

McCoy, 30, is a glove-first player who can bounce between second and shortstop. Wagner, who was acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays at last year's trade deadline, has youth on his side at 27. Castanon, 26, has shown pop in his minor-league career. He slugged three home runs in 16 games for Triple-A El Paso last year following a late-season promotion from Double-A San Antonio. He was a 12th-round selection by the Padres in the 2021 MLB Draft out of Cal Santa Barbara.

The Bad

Cronenworth's reputation for durability has taken a hit after his injuries in 2023 and 2025. Last year, he missed a month with a rib fracture. When he came back, the pop in his bat was lacking. His 32 extra-base hits, .377 slugging percentage and .130 ISO were all full-season career lows.

His fielding was not inspiring, either. He was a below-average second baseman according to the advanced metrics: minus-8 defensive runs saved (DRS), by far a career-worst figure, and minus-1 outs above average (OAA). His fielding run value (FRV) clocked in at minus-2.

Song's offensive potential is a big unknown. His KBO numbers in '24 and '25 were outliers, and now he'll be a part-time player trying to adjust to much tougher pitching. Likewise, he's got injury concerns of his own, as he's currently fighting a nagging oblique injury that could hold him off the Opening Day roster.

McCoy has a career .494 OPS in 84 big-league plate appearances. Wagner spent most of his time at Triple-A after coming over from Toronto. He got just 17 PAs with the Padres. Castanon isn't on Padres Mission's list of the top 20 prospects in the organization, despite his power potential. In other words: Without Song, the depth in the middle infield is lacking.

The Bottom Line

The Padres need Cronenworth to stay healthy and make the majority of the starts at second. Song is unproven and the players behind him do not look like viable everyday options.