The Padres have signed outfielder Oscar González to a minor league deal, in accordance with his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He has been assigned to Triple-A El Paso for now however will presumably obtain an invitation to main league spring coaching.
González, 27, appeared to have a breakout with the Guardians in 2022. He made his main league debut that 12 months and hit 11 residence runs in 91 video games. His 3.9% stroll charge was lower than half of league common however his 19.6% strikeout charge was stable and the homers helped propel him to a .296/.327/.461 batting line and 123 wRC+. He additionally turned a fan favourite by utilizing the SpongeBob SquarePants theme tune as his walk-up music and hitting a walk-off, collection clinching residence run to interrupt a scoreless tie within the backside of the fifteenth in opposition to the Rays within the Wild Card spherical (YouTube hyperlink from MLB).
However his efficiency dipped in 2023. His strikeout charge climbed to 25.6% and his stroll charge fell even additional to 2.8%. He hit simply two residence runs in 54 video games and slashed .214/.239/.312 for a wRC+ of 48. He’s not thought-about a powerful defender, so an absence of offense like that made it inconceivable for him to offer any worth.
The Guardians put him on waivers after that season, with the Yankees claiming him, although the Yanks later handed him by means of waivers unclaimed previous to the 2024 marketing campaign. González went on to have an honest 12 months in Triple-A, round a number of stints on the injured checklist. He obtained into 78 video games and hit eight residence runs. His 20.3% strikeout charge and 4.9% stroll charge have been much like his huge league marketing campaign in 2022. He hit .294/.333/.469 for the RailRiders for a 106 wRC+.
That wasn’t sufficient to get him again to the majors, because the Yankees had an outfield combine consisting of Aaron Choose, Juan Soto, Alex Verdugo, Trent Grisham and Jasson Domínguez for a lot of the 12 months. González was capable of elect free company at season’s finish and now has a brand new alternative with the Padres.
For the Friars, they only misplaced Jurickson Profar and David Peralta to free company. They’ve Jackson Merrill and Fernando Tatis Jr. in two outfield spots however left area is pretty open for the time being. Tirso Ornelas, Eguy Rosario and Brandon Lockridge are on the 40-man roster however every of these three guys has lower than 50 video games of main league expertise.
It wouldn’t be a shock to see the Padres and Profar reunite, given the mutual affection between them, but it surely’s attainable he has priced himself out of San Diego. He’s coming off an incredible season and will look to money in, whereas the membership has had ongoing monetary issues lately.
Whether or not the Padres can improve left area this winter or not, González will give them a little bit of non-roster depth. He hasn’t but accrued sufficient service time to achieve arbitration, so he’d be an affordable possibility for them if he can earn his approach onto the roster. He additionally nonetheless has choices, that means he would have some roster flexibility if he will get a spot.