May 24: The Padres announced that Naylor’s contract has been selected from Triple-A El Paso. Outfielder Alex Dickerson has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a sprained right wrist, thus opening a 25-man roster spot, while lefty Aaron Loup’s transfer from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL opens a spot on the 40-man roster.
May 23: The Padres are planning to promote outfield prospect Josh Naylor, according to Dennis Lin of The Athletic (via Twitter). Corresponding roster moves aren’t yet known.
This decision adds to the interest in tomorrow’s matchup in Toronto, which will already feature just-promoted Blue Jays prospect Cavan Biggio. As Lin notes, Naylor is a Toronto-area native, hailing from neighboring Mississauga. Still another Ontarian, Cal Quantrill, will start Saturday’s game for the Friars.
Naylor was taken with the 12th overall pick of the 2015 draft by the Marlins. He ended up being shipped to San Diego in the partially undone 2016 trade — a transaction that came close on the heels of another swap in which the Friars picked the pocket of the Miami organization.
Primarily a first baseman to begin his professional career, Naylor has been shifted to a corner outfield role more recently in a bid to find a home for his bat. He’s still learning his way around the outfield grass, but has continued to ramp up his productivity at the plate while moving into the upper ranks of the Friars farm.
Naylor received at least one top-100 leaguewide prospect grade entering the present season, with Baseball America slotting him in at #99, and he has certainly boosted his stock since. So far this year, Naylor carries a .299/.378/.538 batting line through 209 plate appearances at Triple-A. He has swatted ten home runs and walked as many times as he has struck out (24 apiece), making for a nicely balanced offensive profile.
Bringing Naylor up is going to require both 40-man and active roster space. It’s fair to wonder whether the time is up for Alex Dickerson, who returned this year from a lengthy run of poor injury luck. He devastated Triple-A pitching but has managed just three singles while going down seven times on strikes in his 19 MLB plate appearances.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Alex Dickerson gone likely. Giving the kid a chance to see what he can do during an interleague trip to play Toronto and NY…looking forward to seeing him in the DH role.
2 teams that sure could use the NL DH: Padres (Hosmer and Naylor) and Mets (Alonso and Smith).
Braves (Donaldson and Riley)?
Pirates Bell, Craig, Polanco
Basically every team in the NL…
Yup! Its a plain as day FACT that the NL needs the DH to survive moving forward. It should have had it 10 years ago and every year since its become clearer and clearer it needs to be introduced.
Or maybe the dh needs to be removed
or maybe it doesnt matter because the different rules offer two different products for two different demographics.
Um… Naylor is a bad 1st baseman. He plays the outfield now
Hopefully they play him in the DH role REGULARLY!! Not one day, he goes 0-3, then sits on the bench for a couple games. The handling of Urias/Mejía playing time has been so bad…. I’m not even confident the Padres will play Naylor, and it’s a pretty easy slam dunk…. just play the kid at DH every game of this road trip. It’s that simple.
Agreed. Those kids should be playing as much as possible, whether in the bigs or AAA. Watching from the pine won’t help.
At least start against all right handers. To your point, cannot go into next season with question marks at catcher, 2b, and CF. Need to figure it out. We know what Hedges and Margot are at this point. Need to answer questions about the other guys and make moves if Urias, Mejia are not going to be the answer. Only playing time with big league team will answer this. Notice I just left out the debacle that is Kinsler…Play the young guys and figure out what needs to be added in the next 9 months!!!
Ooo loo loo loo. Ooo loo loo laa. Boo ba boogooo. Ooo loo loo loo. That’s nice what I say to celebrate this guy coming to the majors!! Lettuce consume pretzels and potatoes in huzzah celebrations of this event here!
Why not play him in the outfield a couple of times and get Reyes off his feet? Remember, Reyes had off-season knee surgery.
They could do that with Naylor also, let Reyes DH. Makes sense to give him a day off in the outfield. But as the club has shown this year, priority number one is playing Wil Myers and trying to get his bat going. So I won’t be surprised if Naylor flat out doesn’t play (either DH or in the OF) for a couple of the games because they will want Myers in the lineup again
I’m still trying to figure out the logic of bringing up another corner outfielder. Especially another one who has issues in the field. Naylor was still developing as a first baseman when they moved him.
The Marlins should delete AJ Prellars phone number
Speed dial yo
AJ has enough with investigation
Interesting. Doesn’t really fit on the roster but he has hit everywhere he’s been at and would have been Rule 5 eligible after the season. I figured it would take an injury to Hosmer for him to get called up before September but I guess not.
He has been playing LF at El Paso, so yes he effectively takes Alex Dickerson‘ spot on the roster.
He will DH in Toronto and play LF or PH going forward.
Calling a top prospect up to play him out of position or use him as a PH? Sounds about right.
To play him out of position? What have you been watching? He has been playing LF all year for El Paso. Exactly what he will do in SD when they aren’t playing an inter-league series on the road.. but okay.
Yes and how does he grade out in LF?
Show me your Tatis? Ahahaha will do fine sir.
In Left Field? Not good. Not good at all.
They’ll slot him in the DH slot for the trip up north. Depending on what the team thinks of his performance by series end, he will either see part time work at 1B and LF and work off the bench as a pinch hitter or a one-way ticket to El Paso.
Predict what you will, but it will be interesting to observe what actually happens.
Working out well for Austin Riley
Naylor has not played a single game at 1B this season and last season he started 89 in LF and 26 at 1B. He has been an OF for some time now.
@bleacherbum, Naylor has played about equal games in LF and RF this season. 43 games in the OF. None at 1B.
Austin Riley is not a DH-only type, he’s a lot more athletic. Similar bats tho…
The NL needs the DH, so bad.
@Koa
0 games at 1B simply shows how badly the Padres want a spot for him on the ML roster. 1B is still his natural position, as far as the numbers go.
Idk how is Riley doing in LF for ATL he is a 3B, how is Senzel doing “out of position” over in CIN?
The trend in the game is to to get your best players to the show as quickly as possible regardless of position. Naylor will be DH’ing the next few games, if the bat plays he will be getting time in LF.
Dude, you CANNOT compare athletic types like Senzel and Riley with a fat guy like Naylor. Straight up lunacy. Naylor has a MLB bat, but an all you can eat buffet body. He’s a DH and will be a good one for some team, probably not SD unless the coward NL adopts the DH next year.
I’m with Strike Four on this one. There is a big difference between playing in the outfield and being an outfielder. Naylor is the former.
I’m not in favor of the NL adopting the DH but with Hunter Renfroe, Franmil Reyes and now Josh Naylor on the roster and with Eric Hosmer signed to an immovable contract at first base, I don’t know of any other team that would benefit as much from it.
He looked fine out there last night to me. Some comments don’t age well…
Bring the Canadian kid up to play in Toronto. That’s pretty awesome!
Let’s goooo!!!
Perfect time for him and Quantrill to shine in Canada!!
And then trade them both for Stroman. :)
Is this only a weekend call up because of the DH? The padres outfield is bad enough, Naylor doesn’t make it any better defensively
The Padres OF ranks 8th in the NL and 15th in MLB. Not bad at all. In fact, exactly average.
Finally, a left handed power bat.
Could’ve been the Marlins 1B of the future but noooo… Imagine if Miami never gave up Paddack, Luis Castillo, Trevor Williams and Naylor. Would be in great position to compete right now and the Jeter fire sale may not have been so large.
Jeter did not give up any of those guys and the fire sale would have been just as large because the MLB payroll alone would have still been $150+ million on revenue of just $206. The Marlins would have lost $50 million in 2018 and more in 2019. They had to trade away at least $50 million in salaries just to stay above water.
Ahhh, the life of a AAAA franchise masquerading as a major leaguer…
True but in that scenario, where the pitching was existent, they would’ve only had to have traded Stanton, Ozuna and maybe a guy like Bour. Not go full fire sale mode and get rid of Gordon and Yelich… trading Ozuna and Stanton alone would have been about $40-45 million in payroll shaved off. And the rotation would have been fronted by Williams, Castillo, and Paddack and whoever else with core position players of Yelich, Realmuto, Gordon, Brian Anderson, and eventually Naylor. Marlins would’ve been a problem right now.
Damn when you put it that way.. I would never pick up another phone call from Preller.
And Domingo German
In all fairness, that was a good trade for the Marlins. Based on what Prado and Phelps did and what phelps got us on trade (Pablo Lopez, a solid No 4 starter).
Three years ago, Alex Dickerson hit a 5th level home run at Rogers Centre. It was an awesome blast to the top deck. I was in awe. Looks like he won’t get the chance to try it again.
He hit 2 of them up there that series.
Doesn’t matter. He’s been given a generous 19 ABs, and hasn’t produced. How long do you expect a team to wait!!?
Classy move by the Padres to bring him up while the team is playing that close to his home. Sad day for Alex Dickerson who will be DFA to make room.
Dickerson not DFA’d. On the injured list.
5’11”, 250 pounds? Seems a bit large for an outfielder.
He is huge. I don’t think he is that small.
I have been so high on Naylor since we got him. If it wasn’t for the dumb Hosmer signing he would be up raking for us already. Trying to keep his bat in the line up is going to make life more difficult for that imbecile Andy Green.
If the Padres didn’t sign Hosmer they could have gotten Harper instead, and run with Naylor at 1B. Worst signing of a terrible player.
Myers is worse than Hosmer now.
But Hosmer also sucks.
16R 5HR 15Rbi and a .398 OBP in the last month doesn’t seem to suck that bad.
No he doesn’t. He is the best hitter on the club right now and has played a fine first base.
Ian Kinsler sucks
Andy Green sucks
Phil Maton sucks
and
Austin Hedges can’t hit.
MLB season is 1 month long now?
LMAO! joke reply bro
As if Padres fans even know what good baseball over a full season even looks like. Least-informed fans in MLB.
Least informed comment on this entire thread. Trying to figure out what you are even saying…Team has had a lot of losing seasons and some bad lineups so the fans do not know what good play or good players look like? Huh…ok well I have a feeling that I am responding to an 8th grader, but I’ll bite…Hosmer is overpaid. No question. But he also has posted over 16 career WAR. He has had a very good season so far. Seems to have every other year. Last year was terrible, agreed. But this attitude of the fans don’t know anything because the team has been bad and ownership has not paid until recently is just stupid. You, are clearly a stupid person. That’s ok though. Your choice to go after an entire population of people and state something inaccurate about them makes YOU look very dumb. I would also love to hear what other absolutes might come out of your mouth about your team that you have figured out after 50 games…
IAN KISLES PAST HIS PRIME HE IS A GOOD BENCH PLAYER NOW.
Andy Green STILL A YOUNG MANAGER , WE CAN HAVE A BETTER MANAGER THAT THIS .
PHIL MATON IS A GOOD RELIVE PITCHER BUT HIS MECHANICS WAS OFF HOPE HE CAN REBOUND ..
AUSTIN HEDGES GOOD DEFENSIVE CATCHER BUT YOU RIGHT IN THIS QUOT HE CAN’T NOT HIT THE DAMM BASEBALL CONSISTENT SAD BUT TRUE,
True dat
Hosmer is one of our best hitters this season, I don’t get other padres fans hate against Hos, go hate Wil Myers who was also blocking Naylor but can’t even hit his body weight..
That’s sad.
Local kid from just west of Toronto. This is a big deal for him, his family and the city of Toronto.
Can we demote Myers please?
I’m still trying to figure out the logic of bringing up another corner outfielder. Especially another one who has issues in the field. Naylor was still developing as a first baseman when they moved him.
Every OF looks like NFL player and has defense issues except for Myers who can’t do anything