The Padres proceed their seek for a longtime outfielder, writes Dennis Lin of the Athletic. Free agent Tommy Pham stays a chance, Lin signifies. San Diego’s common season opener is simply three weeks away.
Lin first reported the Padres had given some consideration to Pham at first of the month. Whereas San Diego has since added Jurickson Profar on a $1MM pact, that’s not an enormous obstacle to bringing in one other outfielder. San Diego nonetheless has solely three outfielders on the 40-man roster: Fernando Tatis Jr., José Azócar and Profar.
No matter whether or not they add anybody else, they’re sorting by way of a couple of non-roster gamers battling in camp. None is extra thrilling than 20-year-old Jackson Merrill. San Diego is understanding the highest shortstop prospect within the outfield this spring. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune wrote this afternoon that Merrill appears more and more more likely to safe a spot on the Opening Day roster.
The Padres wouldn’t name Merrill up in the event that they weren’t going to present him on a regular basis run. He’d be making the leap previous Triple-A. The previous first-round decide break up final 12 months between Excessive-A and Double-A. Merrill put up a .273/.338/.444 line in 211 plate appearances with Double-A San Antonio. That’s stable work within the pitcher-friendly Texas League, though it doesn’t assure he’ll discover success towards massive league pitching instantly.
Relying on potential acquisitions, the Padres might supply Merrill common run in both left or middle subject. Pham could be restricted to left subject. Touchdown him would kick Profar to the bench and supply an improve to the lineup. Pham is coming off a .256/.328/.446 slash with 16 homers and 22 steals by way of 481 plate appearances between the Mets and Diamondbacks. He’s a identified amount for the entrance workplace after taking part in in San Diego from 2020-21.
Including a nook outfielder would go away Merrill competing with Azócar and maybe Jakob Marsee for the middle subject job. Azócar is an effective runner and defensive specialist who has hit .249/.292/.341 in 153 massive league video games. Marsee, 22, solely has 16 video games above Excessive-A. He posted glorious numbers at Excessive-A Fort Wayne a 12 months in the past, operating a .273/.413/.425 line with 41 steals and extra walks than strikeouts. Prospect evaluators usually rank him as a stable however not elite minor league expertise. He’s broadly projected as a fourth outfielder based mostly on sturdy strike zone consciousness with restricted energy.
Every of Oscar Mercado, Bryce Johnson, Cal Mitchell and Tim Locastro are in camp on minor league offers. None of them is more likely to step into an on a regular basis function, however there must be room for at the very least one to safe a bench spot. Michael A. Taylor is the one potential common middle fielder left on the free agent market. Pham, Adam Duvall and Eddie Rosario are the highest nook choices. There’s nonetheless some exercise on the commerce entrance, as this week’s deal sending Manuel Margot to Minnesota demonstrates. Whereas the Padres have been loosely related to Jarren Duran and Sal Frelick in commerce rumors, there’s no indication they made any headway in these discussions.
