PADRES ON DECK: Pauley, Rosario, Locastro, Batten pace Triple-A El Paso 15–5 rout; LHP Krob sharp; Salas, Bush each has 2 hits Photo of Tim Locastro during a Padres Spring Training game By Bill Center Tim Locastro and Matthew Batten combined for nine of El Paso’s 19 hits and Graham Pauley and Eguy Rosario hit fourth and fifth, respectively, in their return to Triple-A Tuesday night as the Chihuahuas routed Albuquerque 15–5 in El Paso. Locastro, who played right and center, went 5-for-6 with a double, a stolen base three RBIs and four runs scored to raise his batting average ..read more

SHILDT SAYS: Discussing Tuesday’s Pitching Match Up and Loading Up with Righties Against Cubs’ Ace; Thoughts on Merrill, Vásquez, Musgrove Randy Vásquez throws a pitch. The Padres Tuesday night are packing their lineup with right-handed hitters against Cubs’ left-handed starter Shota Imanaga (5–0, 0.78 earned run average) at Wrigley Field in Chicago with both Jackson Merrill and Luis Arraez getting the night off. “It’s kind of a plan with Merrill, getting him a day off before the day game Wednesday,” said Padres manager Mike Shildt. “But what a great opportunity and challenge to ..read more

FriarNotes: Darvish Throws Only Zeroes Since Return; Notes on Suarez, Solano, Campusano, 6-Run Innings By Bill Center Yu Darvish throws a pitch during a game. Yu Darvish has yet to give up a run in his two starts since returning from the injured list. Over a pair of five-inning outings against Cincinnati at Petco Park and the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, Darvish has given up six hits and a walk with eight strikeouts in 10 scoreless innings. He gave up three hits in each outing. He has also been efficient, using only 83 pitches against the Reds and 70 against the  ..read more

PADRES ON DECK Players of the Week: LHP Cienfuegos, 1B R. Sanabria Top Honor Roll; Top-30 Prospect List Shuffled By Bill Center Bryce Johnson during a game. Although there was only one game in the Padres’ farm system Monday, there was plenty of news. Rookie center fielder Jackson Merrill and right-handed reliever Stephen Kolek both “graduated” from the MLB Pipeline’s list of Top 30 Padres prospects given the amount of time played in the Major Leagues. Combined with the “graduation” of Eguy Rosario the previous week and the dispatching of prospects Dillon Head, Jakob Ma ..read more

By Bill Center Recently re-acquired left-handed starting pitcher Jackson Wolf, the Padres’ №16 prospect, held Sugar Land to an unearned run on two hits and two walks with three strikeouts over six innings for Triple-A El Paso Sunday, lowering his earned run average with the Chihuahuas to 4.56. Center fielder Homer Bush Jr., the Padres’ №9 prospect, was 1-for-3 with a hit-by-pitch and his 12th stolen base for High Single-A Fort Wayne. Catcher-DH J.D. Gonzalez, the Padres’ №14 prospect, was 1-for-3 with three walks, a hit-by-pitch two RBIs and a run scored for Single-A Lake Elsin ..read more

SHILDT SAYS: The manager and GM A.J. Preller discuss the acquisition of two-time batting champion Luis Arraez for four prospects Photo of Luis Arraez on-deck prior to his Padres debut at Chase Field Before Saturday’s game in Arizona, Padres General Manager A.J. Preller and Manager Mike Shildt discussed the trade that brought two-time batting champion Luis Arraez to the Padres for three of the ball club’s top-14 prospects — center fielders Dillon Head (№6) and Jakob Marsee (№9) and first baseman Nathan Martorella (№14) — plus minor league relief pitcher Woo-Suk Go. Arraez arrived just ..read more

Friar Notes: Profar hitting streak stopped, but Cronenworth now at 7; Notes on Cease, Tatis, Merrill, Estrada By Bill Center Jurickson Profar’s eight-game hitting streak came to an end Friday night in Arizona, but Jake Cronenworth extended his hitting streak to seven straight games — going 3-for-5 with two doubles and a second homer in as many games. Cronenworth is 10-for-26 during the streak with five doubles, two home runs, 10 RBIs, two walks and six runs scored for a .385 batting average, a .429 on-base percentage and a .808 slugging percentage for a 1.237&nbs ..read more

PADRES ON DECK: Ornelas, Cruz, Beshears join Top-30 prospect list; LHP Snelling sharp at Double-A San Antonio Photo of Tirso Ornelas during a Padres Spring Training game By Bill Center The trade that has brought two-time batting champion Luis Arráez to the Padres has created a shakeup in the list of the Padres’ Top-30 prospects with more soon to follow. Going to the Miami Marlins in the trade were three of the Padres’ Top-30 Prospects list — №6 center fielder Dillon Head, №9 center fielder Jakob Marsee and №14 first baseman Nathan Martorella. Those departures allowed left f ..read more

Welcome to San Diego Graphic for Luis Arráez SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Padres have acquired infielder Luis Arráez and cash considerations from the Miami Marlins in exchange for first baseman Nathan Martorella, outfielders Dillon Head and Jakob Marsee, and right-handed pitcher Woo-Suk Go, President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller announced today. A two-time batting champion (.316 in AL in 2022, .354 in NL 2023) and two-time All-Star (2022–23), Arráez is hitting .299 (41-for-137) with a .347 OBP, eight doubles, one triple, five RBI and 22 runs scored i ..read more

FriarNotes: Profar Paces the Padres in Slash Line Categories; Notes on Darvish and Musgrove, Cronenworth and Suarez By Bill Center Jurcikson Profar smiles at Fernando Tatis Jr. Entering the Padres six-game road trip, Jurickson Profar is riding an eight-game hitting streak to take the Padres’ lead in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS. The switch-hitting left fielder is 15-for-30 during the streak with two doubles, two home runs, eight RBIs, four walks and eight runs scored for a .500 batting average, a .559 on-base percentage and a&nb ..read more