Welcome to our series grading every member of the San Diego Padres’ 40-man roster. The roster being evaluated is current as of Oct. 18, prior to the end of the World Series. Because of that, it will include players who will be free agents once the postseason concludes. Each player will be graded on their performance in the 2026 season, including the playoffs. That performance will be weighted based on how much time the player spent with the team (availability is the best ability).
The Padres’ Failed Starter
As the Padres’ general
manager A.J. Preller tends to do each offseason, he went bargain hunting. in 2026, this came in the form of several lower-tier free agents being signed to ridiculously low contracts with the hopes that one or two of them would pan out. One of these was Griffin Canning. Canning was coming off of a career year with the New York Mets, posting a 3.77 ERA across 76 1/3 innings pitched. Unfortunately, a ruptured tendon in his left Achilles ended his season prematurely. That allowed San Diego to pick him up on a measly one-year, $2.5 million deal.
Overall Grade: C
He performed roughly to those expectations. In 30 appearances (11 starts), Canning posted a 5.68 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and .276 opponent batting average. Putting it kindly, he struggled to limit runs. Putting it less kindly, he pitched like a guy who didn’t want to play baseball any longer. Canning simply couldn’t record outs.
His first start was quite good, surrendering just one run across five innings against the Chicago White Sox. Then the illusion came crashing down. Canning would surrender three or more runs in seven of his ten starts. He surrendered more runs than innings pitched seven times. He also surrendered more runs than strikeouts recorded five different times. It was tough going for quite some time.
However, those early struggles make it hard to discern his later success. After failing to pitch in the starting rotation, Canning transitioned into a bulk relief role, where he flourished. The righty pitched his final start for the Padres on July 18 against the Kansas City Royals. After that, Canning only surrendered more than two runs twice with a 2.70 ERA after July 23.
