SAN DIEGO — With Cactus League play in full swing, AJ Preller and his baseball operations staff will have to start narrowing down the list of players who have a chance to finish spring training with a major league team. As the stars head off to play for their respective national teams, here’s what the situation looks like in Padres camp as of Friday night:
Starting rotation and bench game heating up
Starter Randy Vásquez put an impressive end to his 2025 season on Friday against the Rockies. In San Diego’s 3-2 loss to Colorado, he struck out four and allowed no hits in 2 2/3 scoreless innings. Vazquez took a significant leap in his fastball velocity last September and has maintained that velocity, hitting 95 to 97 mph in his first Cactus League start.
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Former Cleveland top prospect Triston McKenzie struggled in the first few innings for the Friars. The hard-throwing right-hander has shown flashes of the electric power he possesses as a farmhand, but has been lacking so far due to a lack of command of the field. He has allowed five earned runs in 2 2/3 innings so far.
Infielder Jose Miranda impressed in 11 at-bats. He batted .545 with a 1.615 OPS, two doubles, a home run and six RBIs. The former Minnesota Twin is competing with returning veteran Ty France and KBO freshman Sung-Mun Song for the backup spot.
for king and country
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Superstars Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. took their final at-bats before heading to join the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic. Machado had an RBI on a sacrifice fly against the Rockies on Friday, but had a pretty good afternoon Thursday after hitting two no-questions-asked homers, including a grand slam against the Cincinnati Reds. He struck out six and scored two runs in the game. Talk about getting hot at the right time.
Other Padres stars headed to the WBC include standout closer Mason Miller of Team USA, shortstop Xander Bogaerts of Team Netherlands, relievers Alek Jacob and Ron Marinaccio of Team Italy and left-hander Wandy Peralta of the Dominican Republic.
Musgrove and Canning make progress
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Veteran right-hander Joe Musgrove is progressing well and is expected to be at full strength on Opening Day. After missing the entire 2025 season due to Tommy John surgery, Musgrove arrived in Peoria with the goal of once again getting ready for his hometown club.
In Thursday morning’s simulated game, he struck out nine against 12 batters and looked incredibly sharp. Various reports indicate that he reached 95 mph on his fastball while spinning his slider and sinker with intense action.
Musgrove’s last major league start came in October 2024 against the Atlanta Braves in the National League Wild Card Series. He struck out four and allowed one run in 3 2/3 innings.
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Newly signed Frere Griffin-Canning is showing positive signs of rehab and continues to work on agility drills with the Padres strength and conditioning staff. He was also able to pitch in the bullpen while working closely with pitching coach Ruben Niebla. Canning is recovering from a ruptured left Achilles tendon last June. Santiago hopes he will be ready to play by early to mid-May.
Is it sales?Tiny?
In unrelated spring training news, the impending resolution to sell the Padres may be close. On Thursday night, Kevin Assi of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that five groups had submitted first-round bids for the franchise. These include Jose E. Feliciano, Dan Friedkin and Joe Lacob.
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Feliciano is a businessman whose private equity firm owns a majority stake in Premier League club Chelsea Football Club. Friedkin, a native of San Diego, also owns Premier League team Everton Football Club and several other business ventures. Lacob, the more popular name of the trio, is the owner of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors and has expressed interest in buying a Major League Baseball team after trying to buy the Los Angeles Angels and Athletics.
Interestingly, The Athletic’s Dennis Lin later reported that Vuori CEO Joe Kudla and NFL legend Drew Brees were among five teams bidding for the Padres, but it was later confirmed that they ultimately did not submit a formal offer before Wednesday’s deadline. However, Kudela and Brees expressed interest in joining other groups in the bidding process.
According to Sportico, the estimated value of the franchise is $2.31 billion. Industry estimates indicate that once the sale is completed, the Seidler family’s sales price will exceed $5 billion.
