Within five days after the end of the World Series all MLB teams have to make decisions regarding the players who have options in their contracts. Those options can be player options (player makes the decision),
club options (club decides what action to take), or mutual options (either side can make the decision).
For the San Diego Padres, the three players who have either a team option or a mutual option are lefty Kyle Hart, catcher Elias Diaz and outfielder Ramón Laureano. Let’s look at the easiest one first.
Ramón Laureano
The left fielder came to the Padres at the trade deadline as part of the swap with the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for six Padres prospects. Ryan O’Hearn also joined the team with that trade. Laureano was a happy surprise for the Padres after the deadline. In his 50 games with the Friars, Laureano hit .269/.323/.489 with an .812 OPS. He had nine home runs and 30 RBI over that period. Along with his right-handed bat, Laureano played steady defense in left field and plays with an edge/intensity that the team has lacked. Some likened him to a better-behaved version of Tommy Pham.
He will be on the last year of his contract and his club option is for $6.5 million. This appears to be a slam dunk in that his bat and his attitude are sorely needed by the Friars.
Elias Diaz
Diaz was the primary catcher for the team until the acquisition of Freddy Fermin at the deadline. He was valued by manager Mike Shildt for his defense and the steady presence behind the plate handling the Padres pitchers. Diaz is known for his defensive skill and pitcher handling, not his offense. Despite that, Diaz contributed some key home runs, but overall could not meet minimum needs for a primary catcher. His .204/.270/.337 line with a .607 OPS included nine home runs and 29 RBI. He had 74 strikeouts to 21 walks and was part of the black hole that existed at the bottom of the Padres hitting order for much of the season.
Diaz could be an acceptable backup to start 2026 if it were not for his contract. He has a mutual option with the Padres for $7 million with a $2 million buyout if the team or player declines. It is not likely that Diaz would decline this option, but I think the Padres should. There are multiple catchers on the free agent market this offseason that could be signed for less and provide just as good or better performance. Three such names are Christian Vasquez, James McCann or former Padre Gary Sanchez.
President of baseball operations A.J. Preller also said in his end-of-season presser that Luis Campusano would be with the team in Spring Training and will be given another opportunity to stick as an option. This remains difficult for me to believe, given how poorly his defense has been in all his previous opportunities. The bat has also been non-existent with every chance he got in 2025. It remains to be seen if this is what the organization will follow through with or attempt to get rid of Campusano.
Kyle Hart
Hart was signed by Preller before last season out of the KBO in Korea. He had been pitching in Korea for the last several seasons after failing to get an MLB contract after becoming a free agent. He began the season starting for the Padres, but his lack of command and high-quality pitches got him into trouble quickly. In his six starts and 41 innings pitched, Hart had a 6.15 ERA. That got him moved down to El Paso in May and he was used as a starter and reliever in Triple-A. Hart was called back up in July twice and again in August for a longer period. Over the 14 games he appeared in as a reliever, Hart threw 17.1 innings with a 4.67 ERA.
This gave him an overall 3-3 record with a 5.86 ERA in 20 games and 43 innings pitched with 37 strikeouts and 13 walks. He had a .233 average against for the season.
The Padres have a club option for $5 million or a $500,000 buyout. Considering the fact that left-handed relievers are in high demand, there seems to be a case that could be made for giving him another opportunity. But at the price of his contract it would not be that difficult to find another lefty to fit into that price range. He was not effective enough to justify the price and the organization would be best served to let him go.
The other players on the team with options are all player options only. It seems obvious to assume that Michael King and Robert Suarez will opt out of their contracts and that Wandy Peralta will again accept his option for $8.9 million.
Arbitration-eligible players
The players that are arbitration-eligible can also be non-tendered as an option. Among the Padres eligible for arbitration there are no obvious non-tender candidates. Following is a list of arbitration-eligible players with projected salaries from MLB TradeRumors:
Adrian Morejon– $3.6 million
Jason Adam- $6.8 million (Adam would be a non-tender candidate if the team believes he will not be ready to pitch for most of the season due to his quad injury that required surgery and has an expected recovery of 6-9 months).
Gavin Sheets– $4.3 million
JP Sears– $3.5 million (Sears was not particularly effective, even for a back-0f-the-rotation pitcher. If the organization thinks they could find a better option, they could non-tender him. To me that seems unlikely considering the need for starters).
Luis Campusano– $1 million (I would have considered him a non-tender candidate if not for Preller’s statement during his presser last month).
Mason Miller– $3.4 million (What a steal!)
Freddy Fermin– $1.8 million
Qualifying offers
Option candidate decisions must be made by Nov. 18, the same date as all qualifying offers must be made to pending free agents. The Padres should definitely extend offers to Michael King and Dylan Cease. Since the qualifying offer price this year is $22.025 million, I would not offer that to Luis Arraez, Robert Suarez or Ryan O’Hearn.
These decisions begin the offseason roster construction and financial adjustments all MLB teams will make for the 2026 season. Preller and his lieutenants now begin the process of building the 2026 San Diego Padres.
