Randy Holt

Given how offseason budget constraints forced the San Diego Padres to assemble their roster, the bench was always something of a question for the 2026 team. Sure enough, the progression of this season has been fraught with turnover via designation for assignment (Nick Castellanos), injury (Gavin Sheets, Samad Taylor), and underperformance (Sung-Mun Song). Luis Rengifo was sort of a saving grace upon his selection to the roster back in July, but a torn ACL brought his season to an unceremonious end as the team continued to struggle to piece together a reserve group. Enter Dustin Harris. A castoff of the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros this season, Harris signed a minor-league deal with the Padres back in July. He lit up opposing pitching in El Paso to the tune of a .350/.422/.617 line before being selected to the major-league roster toward the end of August. In the wake of the injuries to Rengifo & Sheets (alongside the continued absence of Ramón Laureano), Harris has helped the bench remain afloat in a number of ways. It's not just that Harris has performed well, though he's certainly done so with a .347/.389/.469 line through his first 55 plate appearances. He's also added a pair of doubles, two triples, and four stolen bases on five attempts. Beyond the performance is the type of role he's been able to fill. While Harris has gotten regular work in left field given the myriad of injuries the team has faced, he's also played in both right and center while serving as a pinch hitter and pinch runner on multiple occasions. That flexibility also applies to the batting order, where Harris has hit in six different spots. Even without a power element in his game, his ability to create contact and work his way on base makes him a benefit to the lineup in any spot on a given day. What's particularly important about Harris' ability to move around both the outfield and the batting order is his relation to a lineup that doesn't feature a ton of flexibility. Their regulars are almost all locked into their specific positions, with Song representing the only reserve infielder capable of actually moving around. Harris performing as well as he has has allowed Craig Stammen to move Fernando Tatis Jr. back to second base on occasion and maintain some semblance of upside in the wake of big struggles from Song & Jake Cronenworth. It really is a crucial development for the Padres and Stammen's ability to manage the roster. Rengifo had played so well prior to his injury in a way that supplemented the roster as well as any one player can. Harris' performance through his first 50-ish plate appearances has allowed them to maintain that, to the point where FanGraphs has him grabbing over 50 percent of the time in left field moving forward. Such a development speaks to just how essential his presence has proven to be over the last handful of weeks and moving into the home stretch of the regular season. View full article

Prior to 2026, Luis Campusano had never really gotten his opportunity to solidify a role with the San Diego Padres. Previously looked at as a bat-first catcher, the most extensive run he got was 299 plate appearances in 2024 where he was almost entirely unplayable behind the dish. It's otherwise been a smattering of up-and-down travel from El Paso, none of it sustainable. This season, however, has represented a shift. While Campusano's 224 plate appearances won't represent a career-high, it's not due to a lack of faith from first-year manager Craig Stammen. Rather, that's the byproduct of a midsummer injury. Because when Campusano's been healthy, he's been in the mix. And Stammen has had every justification to run his No. 2 catcher out there as much as possible. Campusano's line on the season stands at .268/.366/.438. His wRC+ is at 130, his ISO is at .170, and he's shown enough defensive growth throughout the season to justify a place as the team's backup behind Freddy Fermin. His role as a pure bat has also expanded. With Gavin Sheets and Miguel Andujar each missing time in the season's second half, Campusano has gotten more run as the team's designated hitter; after appearing just once as a DH prior to the end of July, he's done it 10 times (two as a pinch-hitter) since the start of August. In general, it's all optimism around the output of Luis Campusano this season. But here at the midway point of September, some struggles are beginning to emerge in a way that they hadn't in the months prior. Much of the positive work Campusano turned in came in April & July, with the two months in between becoming a wash due to a fractured toe. On either end of the injury, though, he posted identical .326 averages, on-base figures of .380 & .456, and a combined wRC+ of 152. While there wasn't as much power in the latter of the two months, he walked more than 19 percent of the time and got plenty of fortune on batted balls. August is where we saw things slow down a touch. His wRC+ slipped to 112, but the power bumped back up (.115 ISO), and he continued to turn in strong numbers thanks to his plate approach (13.1 BB%). The calendar flipping over to September, however, hasn't left us with as much room for optimism. Midway through the month (52 plate appearances), Campusano's slash reads .229/.288/.438. His walk rate has fallen to below six percent. The power, at a .208 ISO, has become the only redeeming factor as his bat is just scratching above the average threshold (103 wRC+) in the first two weeks of the season's final month. While it's a concerning level of decline given what we saw over the first handful of months of the season, it's also not something that's particularly mysterious. Campusano has become more aggressive: His 54.4 percent swing rate is his highest in an individual month. With the exception of an even 50 percent back in April, it's actually startlingly higher than any other month. His chase rate has ballooned to 34.5 percent. It hasn't led to any decrease in the contact trends, but the quality of it has waned; his hard-hit rate of 28.9 percent is 14 percentage points lower than it was in July and seven points lower than it was in August. That has, in turn, led to a decline in his batted-ball fortune, where his BABIP is just .229 for the month. There are myriad reasons why this shift could be occurring, but it seems likely that Campusano is selling out for power. The increase in swing rate coupled with the fact that his 74.7 MPH bat speed this month is easily his fastest of the season is indicative of such a mindset. That he's not losing anything in terms of his contact rates speaks to his ability to make contact, but the loss of a mature plate approach has sapped him of actual production by decreasing the quality of said contact. This is something that Campusano will have to rein in down the stretch if he's to continue being a crucial supplemental bat for the Padres. There aren't any questions about what we saw earlier in the year, but that early success has wrought new expectations. At a time when the Friars need all the offense they can get, a more well-rounded approach from Campusano would go a long way toward lengthening the lineup. View full article

While Mason Miller gets the attention out of the San Diego Padres bullpen as baseball's top reliever, the team has also boasted, arguably, the No. 2 man in relief in Adrian Morejon. Morejon's success is the continued progression of three consecutive years pitching in leverage for the Padres. What began as a breakout 2024 continued to the tune of a 2.08 ERA and an All-Star appearance last season. This year, Morejon has driven up the strikeout rate to a career-high (29.7 percent) and carries a gaudy 59.6 groundball rate. Courtesy of his sinker-changeup-slider combo, Morejon's continued dominance has his percentile chart looking extraordinary: Now that we have the good end of the spectrum out of the way, let's talk about some concerns that have begun to emerge at this late stage of the season. Morejon is coming up on a career-high in terms of his volume of appearances; his 69 leaves him on pace to at least match last year's 75. However, he's already exceeded his career mark for innings, with 79.2 passing up last year's number by three with another three-ish weeks to go in the year. That's a number of appearances exceeding three outs for a pitcher so crucial to the long-term gains of the team, as far as postseason prospects go. That's a lot of volume in consecutive seasons for a relief pitcher. Generally, that's something you'd prefer to avoid in order to stave off any kind of regression in performance. To date, Morejon has been able to effectively navigate such volume. However, Sunday afternoon's outing against the New York Yankees was an indication, of which there have been a recent smattering, that the workload could be catching up with him. Entering with a 4-0 lead in the eighth inning, Morejon allowed three hits and a walk that culminated in three runs (two earned). That Luis Campusano was able to throw out a baserunner at second base with one out at least put Morejon in a situation where he was back to two outs with the bases empty before handing the ball to Miller for the ninth. No harm done in the grand scheme. However, that type of tumultuous outing is starting to manifest a bit more often. On September 1, Morejon worked 0.2 innings, walked two and allowed two hits, resulting in a pair of earned runs in a game the team lost 4-3. On August 29th, he faced five batters after allowing a hit and a walk in his inning of work. Between August 19th and September 6, Morejon had a 4.15 ERA (last among the team's qualifying relievers) and a 13.5 percent walk rate (highest among the team's qualifying relievers). Those are the types of things that are at least indicative of cracks. However, we're not on full-blown Morejon watch quite yet. The walk number is the most concerning element; Morejon hasn't exceeded 11 percent in an individual month, and he's gotten things under control in his past few outings. However, between the continued display of strikeouts (29.7 percent), huge groundball numbers (60.0 percent), and velocity that is actually increasing (97.1 in September is his highest in an individual month), now isn't the time to worry. Especially when his xERA is still barely scratching above two. So it's something to monitor, especially on the command side, but we are otherwise continuing to view Adrian Morejon as every bit the arm he's been purported to be since 2024. View full article

If Luis Campusano's weekend was a coming-out party, it couldn't have come at a better time for the San Diego Padres. While the loudest things to hit the stat sheet were a walk-off home run on Friday night and a solo jack on Sunday that would turn out to be the game (and series) winner over the New York Yankees, it's what Campusano did behind the plate that made it a marquee weekend for the team's No. 2 backstop. That work started on Friday, when Campusano threw out three Yankee baserunners in an extra-inning affair: He did it in a scoreless game in the second inning, in a 1-1 game in the fifth, and, most crucially, in the 10th inning with the Padres trailing 2-1. That allowed the team to keep it close before he did the rest of the work in the bottom half of the inning. On Sunday, he was at it again. As Adrian Morejon struggled to preserve the lead in his outing, Campusano's heave to second base in the bottom of the eighth put a second out on the board and cleared the bases for the team to finish off the last four outs of a 4-3 win: The throwing element represents the most obvious area of growth for a player whose long-term status at the catcher spot was thrown into some doubt following a tough 2024 season and absence of legitimate opportunity in 2025. As the Padres built their 2026 roster under new manager Craig Stammen, no true backup was brought in behind Freddy Fermin. That left Campusano with his first real opportunity in two seasons. His arm has certainly latched onto the chance. Campusano's caught-stealing-above-average figure (+2) ranks in the 72nd percentile league-wide. That ranks 21st in the league, with his actual rate of runners thrown out (32 percent) sitting eighth among the league's backstops. That's eight percent higher than his estimated CS%. What's important to note about Campusano is that while that is the only element of his defensive game that ranks above average, there's been real growth in the other areas. The last time we saw him behind the plate with any kind of regularity, his framing (measured in Framing Runs) drew a grade of -8. This year, he's at -5. His blocking (Blocking Above Average) was at -3; now it's at -1. His overall Catching Runs has graduated from -13 in 2024 to -4 this season. Again, those are still below-average figures, but they represent significant growth in each respect. That Campusano has such marked defensive growth is important for a couple of different reasons. The first is that his offensive upside far exceeds that of the incumbent starter Freddy Fermin. Fermin has excelled virtually everywhere on the defensive side, but carries a career-worst 61 wRC+ this year. He's been "better" in the second half, but is still a massive step down with the bat. Campusano becoming competent behind the dish, even if that simply means just being average, allows Stammen to make the offensive play on his daily lineup card without comprising on defense. The other piece of significance is what it means for Campusano's long-term future with the Padres. The bat plays. The bat always played, even without a legitimate run to prove it. With two more years of team control, it's entirely possible that his blend of offense from behind the plate and improving defense has locked him into a role in a way that may not have been perceived before. Could the team explore a move of Fermin this winter with top prospect Ethan Salas now arriving at the top level? That would give the Padres a younger 1-2 punch behind the plate with a much higher offensive upside than the current shape of the roster. Even if changes to the roster aren't quite so drastic, it really is a crucial development for the organization. That Campusano has grown to play even remotely competent defense and compensate for the shortcomings with his arm helps to provide some stability for a position that has featured a great deal of turnover in recent years. Whether it's Fermin or Salas as his running mate next year, the defensive development of Luis Campusano has to have the Padres feeling quite good about what the catcher position looks like beyond 2026. View full article

The rotation for the 2026 San Diego Padres always seemed destined serve as a weak point of the roster. Fragilely assembled out of a collection of minor-league and one-year deals, there wasn't a whole lot of certainty to be offered by the starting five despite the stability provided by the bullpen behind them. That largely came to fruition as the season progressed. In the first half, the Padres ranked 21st in innings from starting pitchers (848.2), 17th in ERA (4.25), and 19th in FIP (4.24). They also sat 19th in strikeout rate (21.5 percent) and 22nd in walk rate (9.5 percent), with a rare saving grace that they ranked merely in the middle in hard contact surrendered (38.2 percent). It's really that first number that stood as most concerning for much of the year. In March & April, they were 28th in the league in innings pitched by starters (268.0), before jumping to 16th in May (248.0) only to fall back to 22nd in June (228.2). That led to concerns about a taxed bullpen, especially as some injuries began to emerge out of the relief corps. Given all of that, A.J. Preller made it a point to confront the pitching issue directly at this year's trade deadline. He acquired Robbie Ray from the San Francisco Giants & Casey Mize from the Detroit Tigers, with the additional expectation that Joe Musgrove would return from his continued Tommy John recovery at some point in the second half. There was also a bump in performance from some of the regulars. While we've seen names like Griffin Canning, Matt Waldron, JP Sears, and Germán Márquez pitch their way out of a starting gig (if not the organization), other names began to stabilize the group. Michael King & Walker Buehler have each been remarkably steady over their last handful of starts while Randy Vásquez went on his own mini hot streak. Factor in the additions of Ray & Mize, and there was an expectation that the group would evolve from a severe shortcoming of this roster to something more resembling an actual strength. Now creeping deeper into September, we can pretty definitively say that hasn't happened. For their part, King, Buehler, and Vásquez have continued to stay the course. King has only failed to reach six innings of work in two of his last 11 starts, Buehler ended August with three outings of six frames and one of five, and Vásquez ended August with a 2.57 ERA across 28 innings, his best in any individual month. Ray has also been varying levels of fine. He has a 3.42 ERA through five starts with the Padres (though he's only averaging a shade over five innings per start). Where the Padres run into trouble with their previously conceived optimism is in Mize and in Musgrove, two arms that looked prime to provide as much upside as we'd seen from this group in 2026. Through six starts with the Padres, Mize has a 6.67 ERA. His debut was a 3.1-inning, nine-runs-allowed start before adding starts of an injury-shortened, four-earned-run variety and a four-inning, four-earned effort to close the month. In the two latter outings, he allowed a combined five home runs across 6.2 total innings. Musgrove, meanwhile, appeared to be nearing the end of his rehab work. In his final El Paso start in August, he threw five innings and allowed just one run. It was as good as he looked across a quartet of minor-league starts. However, recovery continues to be an issue following starts. He went 12 days between appearances for the Chihuahuas ahead of that last appearance, with no indication of when we may see him on the mound again. At this point, it's fairly clear that he's not an arm that can be relied upon for even one inning before season's end. And none of this even takes into account Nick Pivetta. After abruptly leaving a rehab start on August 4, he's appeared twice (including on August 30) for El Paso. Therein, he threw 4.1 innings and didn't allow a run. He's expected to be back tonight, though it's unfair to expect he'll immediately resume his position atop the rotation after such a long hiatus. So, while the Padres are still in better shape than they might have been in the first half of the season, rotation concerns still persist. They're merely taking on a new form with different names. While the starting pitching doesn't bear the entire responsibility for the team's recent slide out of a Wild Card position, any sort of positive news would be a welcome development for a team hoping to shift the vibe back in the correct direction as soon as possible. View full article

When the San Diego Padres signed Ty France to a minor-league pact in the middle of February, it had the chance to be a good story. While his place on the roster wasn't guaranteed up against multiple players of a similar profile, the former San Diego State Aztec & 2015 Padres draftee had the opportunity for a homecoming after consecutive seasons of plying his trade for multiple teams. That fresh status as a journeyman that France attained across stints with Seattle, Cincinnati, Minnesota, and Toronto were a mixed bag. He'd struggled on both sides of the ball in his final season with the Mariners and post-trade-deadline with the Reds in 2024 before regaining his defensive form (and some of his bat) with the Twins the following year. He spent time on the shelf with the Blue Jays after another deadline deal landed him in a new spot, but reappeared for Toronto in last year's World Series. That February signing back in San Diego came at a time when the team had added (or would add) Miguel Andujar and Nick Castellanos to a roster that already featured Gavin Sheets as a first-base-corner-outfield profile. France, nevertheless, was able to grab a roster spot courtesy of a strong spring and some positional injuries that unfolded during the exhibition season. Not only did he do that, but he's since become a key player in the team's playoff push. Nearly through the end of August, France has contributed a .285/.355/.501 line with a 138 wRC+. In a general sense, it's his best offensive season since 2022, with his .218 isolated power number representing a new career high. Not only has he regained form, he's done so in a way that would put him as the team's top hitter if measured by wRC+. Only Fernando Tatis Jr.'s 124 comes remotely close to matching France's full-season offensive output. Perhaps more importantly, the 32-year-old has been a stabilizing force on the infield. With the Padres featuring one of the league's most improved defensive units, France's name figures to be in the mix for some accolades at the position come season's end. He's third in Outs Above Average among first basemen (with five) with a success rate of 79 percent against an estimated rate of 77 percent. If we flipped the metric to Defensive Runs Saved, France actually leads the position with 12. There isn't any doubt as to France's value to this particular Padres team. But on a minor-league deal that became a one-year MLB pact, there's now a question as to whether the Friars should make this a longer-term arrangement. He has undoubtedly played himself into more earning power his next time out. That much is objective. Not far behind it, though, in the rankings of things considered to be inarguable is the idea that France should be manning the position again in 2027 (or, you know, 2028). The Padres do not have a prospect of which we can speak that is banging on the door of the big-league first base job. Romeo Sanabria represents perhaps the closest name to such a concept, but he has struggled mightily in 80ish plate appearances in El Paso (30 wRC+). Nor is there anyone on the present roster that you'd feel comfortable holding down the gig with any regularity; Jake Cronenworth's profile doesn't fit the position, and Gavin Sheets isn't someone you want to run out against left-handed pitchers. The list of first base free agents this winter is also an uninspiring group as a whole. Given all of that, it'd be really difficult to make a case against retaining Ty France beyond 2026. One images the cost itself wouldn't be prohibitive (especially if new ownership is able to offer an injection of at least some additional financing), nor would the length of a new contract. It really all reads as easy a call as A.J. Preller and co. will have to make this winter. View full article

The San Diego Padres are poised to get a couple of regular contributors back into the mix soon. Samad Taylor is on rehab assignment while Miguel Andujar has begun a swinging progression on his way back from a broken wrist. That these two increasingly imminent returns are approaching adds a wrinkle to a roster that already featured another one earlier this week. When the Padres optioned Sung-Mun Song to Triple-A El Paso, they created a roster deficiency in the form of a lack of infield depth. The only supplemental infielder listed on the official roster is Gavin Sheets, who has been used only sparingly at first base for more than a month. Neither of Taylor or Andujar returning changes that calculus; Taylor hasn't appeared on the infield since 2023 and Andujar, while capable of handling an infield corner, is far from an ideal solution beyond the odd appearance once in a blue moon. Which means that the Padres have some additional decisions ahead of them following Song's option. That Taylor is a lock for the roster upon his return speaks to how strong a year he was turning in prior to his stay on the injured list with an oblique injury. He had wRC+'d 135 over a 102 plate appearance sample with six steals courtesy of 93rd percentile sprint speed. Andujar, meanwhile, was always figured to be a key bat as a doubles machine that doesn't strike out a whole lot. Obviously, the expansion of rosters in September does have an impact here. Taylor's return is closer and will likely ignite a decision before we flip the calendar, while Andujar's return could come once there's already more wiggle room with which to work. At the same time, the standard protocol is, generally, a position player and a pitcher get added, bringing the total to 14 each. Many teams are inclined to call up a catcher to provide that position group with a little relief given its intense demand. As such, there's no guarantee that the Padres will use the expansion to answer the questions surrounding the impending roster decisions. Which means that there's a couple of players that could be in danger of losing a roster spot in the coming days or weeks in the way that we just saw Song surrender his. The outfield picture is already particularly crowded, with six players listed on the roster for that position group. Of that group, you have your stars (Fernando Tatis Jr. & Jackson Merrill) and at least one player in Luis Rengifo that appears to have played his way into being a lock for the stretch run on the strength of a 139 wRC+ in the second half (to say nothing of his ability to jump to the infield in a pinch). That leaves Jase Bowen, Austin Hays, and the newly added Dustin Harris as those who could be at risk of finding their way off the roster upon the respective returns of Taylor & Andujar. Bowen has had the longest run on the Padres roster, largely due to his ability to hang in centerfield in Jackson Merrill's stead. Most of his work, though, has come as a late-inning replacement as the team has had to hide his bat as much as possible. His wRC+ is a paltry 32 with a walk rate under three percent against a strikeout rate over 36 percent. There just isn't much offensive upside at present, and the fact that he has options remaining likely means that he'll be the one sent to El Paso first upon the return of the team's two injured players. It's not as if Austin Hays has offered too much certainty either, though. Since his big pinch-hit homer to introduce himself in San Diego, Hays has gone on to hit .250 and reach base at a .308 clip in 24 plate appearances. The fact that he's a right-handed bat more capable of providing power than Taylor, however, could grant him a longer look. He's certain to stick around longer than Bowen, at the very least. Harris has been with the team for the shortest amount of time (two games, seven plate appearances), but was scorching in Triple-A prior to his selection to the roster. He'd slashed a gaudy .350/.422/.617 in 120 plate appearances for the Chihuahuas, which could offer enough intrigue to give him more staying power than even Hays, despite the team's need for a lefty killer off the bench. With Taylor himself a right-handed hitter, they at least wouldn't lose the balance that Hays offers off the bench. Assuming that September is used to recall a catcher or Song, at least two of these names are going to find their way off the roster in the short term. Bowen will, by all accounts, be the first to go. The decision between Hays & Harris isn't going to be an easy one, though, unless one separates himself from the other. Either would have to be designated for assignment and could seek their next bench gig rather than accept an outright assignment back to El Paso. Which means that the Padres have some very real decisions ahead of them as they work to sort out what's left of their outfield-heavy bench in the coming weeks. View full article

On Tuesday, the Cincinnati Reds placed each of third baseman/designated hitter Eugenio Suárez and outfielder TJ Friedl on waivers. This opens up the possibility of a contender fortifying their bench for the stretch run. Should the San Diego Padres be that contender? In general, neither of Suárez or Friedl offer much appeal if we were to look at their 2026 output. Suárez has followed up his 49 home runs last season with only 19 this year, has a 91 wRC+, and is striking out at a 34.9 percent clip that is abnormal even by his standards. Friedl, meanwhile, was ousted as the Reds' starting center fielder earlier this year and has been absolutely miserable at the plate, slashing .158/.242/.234, with a brutal 33 wRC+ and a 23.3 percent strikeout rate that is seven percentage points above his career average. Neither player features much in the way of selling points. But the Padres are also in the process of sorting their bench. At present, the reserve group is especially outfield heavy following the option of Sung Mun Song to Triple-A El paso. That's left Luis Rengifo, Gavin Sheets, Jase Bowen, Austin Hays, and newly-selected Dustin Harris working their way through left field, designated hitter, and as bats off the bench. Samad Taylor is on a rehab assignment while Miguel Andujar has begun a throwing progression, indicating further movement is on the horizon. Whether that movement could be prompted sooner as the result of a claim of either Suárez or Friedl is a question worth asking for at least a moment. Suárez, for all his warts in the contact and strikeout elements of his game, is a legitimate power threat. He's eclipsed 30 home runs three times since 2021. His 10.6 percent barrel rate sits in the 69th percentile, three points above the big-league average. If there's a case to be made, it's here. Despite underwhelming numbers on the season as a whole, Suárez has walked more than usual (10.0 percent) and has been solid in August. As we reach the end of the month, he's contributed five homers and a 134 wRC+ to his full-season output. He's not going to offer much in the way of defensive acumen—even less so because his below average glove has only been seen at third base this year, a position which is quite occupied in San Diego—but as a right-handed option off the bench or as a designated hitter, it's not as if his addition would hurt. With the claiming team being on the hook for nearly $3 million, though, the positional limitation he'd add to the roster would be a difficult one to justify. As for Friedl, it's hard to find a reason for the Padres to put in a claim. He has a history of quality production at the plate as recently as 2025, but he's been quite miserable in every offensive respect this year (even if his defense in the outfield has remained above average). Outfield depth is not at all an area of need for San Diego, meaning that this isn't even one they'd remotely consider. While we're loathe to underestimate A.J. Preller's aggression in upgrading the roster whenever possible, this doesn't appear to be a time where he'll be too active in doing so. View full article