Padres offseason underway; minor league free agents

SB Nation

The 2025-26 Hot Stove League is underway with two transactions by the Padres. Free agent utility player Pablo Reyes, 32, was signed to a minor league contract on Nov. 11. Reyes has seen time in MLB from

2018-2025 with multiple teams. He missed 2020 due to a banned substance suspension. He will most likely get a Spring Training invite and will be assigned to El Paso if he doesn’t make the roster.

Kyle Hart re-signs

LHP Kyle Hart had his option declined by the Padres last week, but re-signed on Monday to a one-year deal with a club option for 2027. He will be guaranteed $1 million for 2026 with a $200,00 buyout or $2.5 million salary for 2027. Hart pitched both as a starter and a reliever for the Padres and in Triple-A El Paso, but struggled with command, allowing too many runs. He performed somewhat better as a reliever than a starter last season.

Luis Arraez

At the General Manager’s meeting in Las Vegas, Padres General Manager A.J. Preller told Robert Murray of FanSided that the team was interested in bringing Arraez back in 2026. As has been previously noted, Arraez would have to sign a team-friendly deal to make any sense and his role would have to change as compared to last season.

Bullpen to starter?

Dating back to the last offseason, there has been discussions about converting another bullpen arm into a starter. Last year, the Padres put an end to the discussion before Spring Training by stating that high-leverage reliever Adrian Morejon would not be stretched out to start.

Even before the end of the 2025 season, the discussion began again. Although Morejon and wipeout reliever Mason Miller are the two most obvious candidates (both have started in their careers), Dennis Lin of The Athletic wrote of rookie David Morgan being a possible conversion candidate. Expectations should be kept in check after Preller noted that diluting the bullpen would not be something he was interested in doing. Discussions have to be held with prospective conversion candidates soon, as their offseason workouts are affected by the role they will have next season.

Jason Adam is optimistic

Back-end reliever Jason Adam, who ruptured his quad tendon in early September, is hoping to return to the team in time for opening day. The reported recovery time after quad tendon repair surgery is six to nine months, so a March return would be optimistic.

Awards season

Padres third baseman Manny Machado won his third Silver Slugger, while Fernando Tatis Jr. won his second Gold Glove and second Platinum Glove in right field. Tatis Jr. led all NL right fielders in defensive runs saved with 15.

Nick Pivetta finished in the sixth position in Cy Young voting with his 2.87 ERA. Barring a major acquisition this offseason, Pivetta figures to be the opening day starter for 2026.

Tatis Jr. finished eighth in the MVP voting despite having an off year offensively. His early season hot streak stimulated discussion of NL MVP, but then he slumped and never fully recovered. His 6.1 fWAR mostly reflects his defensive excellence. His power and average were both down in 2025, but he has become more disciplined as a hitter.

There were no All-MLB players on the Padres this year, despite having multiple nominees. Machado and Merrill were Second Team last season and Tatis Jr. has been named twice.

Ethan Salas

According to A.J. Preller, catcher Ethan Salas is healthy and engaged in baseball activities. He was held back from Fall League action on the recommendation of the medical staff, and the team has not decided if he will play winter ball or just be ready for Spring Training.

Michael King

Jim Bowden of The Athletic states that Michael King is being heavily pursued by the New York Yankees and the Chicago Cubs are also very interested. If this goes into a bidding war, the Padres will not be players. Their budget will not allow trying to outbid those two organizations.

Minor league free agents

The end of the 2025 season saw the end of the run for multiple Padres minor league players.

The longest tenured player in the organization, Eguy Rosario, is a free agent. He had a disastrous 2025 and ended the season with a return to Arizona to work on his game and a brief appearance in Double-A at the end of the season.

Utility man Tyler Wade was released from the roster during the season and stayed in the organization, but his option for 2026 was declined and he is a free agent.

RHP Logan Gillaspie, RHP Eiker Huize, IF Francis Acuña, IF Clay Dungan, catcher Roberto Duran and catcher Victor Duarte were all free agents but re-signed with the organization.

These players were free agents as of Nov. 6: