In a somewhat unusual move, the Padres have selected the contract of outfielder Preston Tucker before promptly placing him on the 10-day IL with plantar fasciitis in his right foot. To make room for Tucker on the 40-man roster, right-hander Angel Felipe was designated for assignment. MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell shed some light on the club’s decision, noting that Tucker had an impending opt-out opportunity in the minor league deal he signed with the Padres back in December.
The 32-year-old Tucker last played in the major leagues in 2018. A seventh round pick by the Astros in the 2012 draft, Tucker made a solid impression with Houston during his 2015 rookie season, slashing .243/.297/.434 with 13 homers and 19 doubles in just 323 trips to the plate. Altogether, Tucker’s debut performance was good for a 104 wRC+ that clocked in just above league average. Unfortunately, things would take a turn for the worse the following season, as Tucker struggled to a .164/.222/.328 slash line in 144 plate appearances. That lead the Astros to option Tucker to the minors for their entire 2017 championship campaign before designating the outfielder for assignment in December.
That led the Braves to take a chance on Tucker, acquiring him from the Astros in a minor trade a few days later. Atlanta surely did not regret their decision, as Tucker hit a respectable .256/.307/.444 in 62 games for the Braves in 2018. His time in Atlanta was interrupted at the trade deadline that year, when he was traded for the second time in eight months as part of the package that brought Adam Duvall to the Braves from Cincinnati. Tucker’s time in Cincinnati was brief, as he appeared in just 17 games with the club before the Reds traded him back to Atlanta in exchange for cash considerations. Tucker scuffled badly in his final 18 games of the season, however, hitting just .083 without an extra base hit upon his return to Atlanta. Those struggles prompted the Braves to outright Tucker off the roster, leaving him to elect free agency after the 2018 season.
Since then, Tucker spent three seasons with the Kia Tigers in the KBO, slashing .284/.372/.466 during his time in Korea before departing the club after the 2021 campaign. Tucker returned to stateside ball in 2022, signing a minor league deal with the Braves before joining San Diego this past offseason. Since signing with the Padres, Tucker has put up impressive numbers at the Triple-A level, slashing .342/.468/.658 in 44 games. While Tucker posted those massive numbers in the offense-inflated Pacific Coast League, they’re impressive even for that offensive environment as demonstrated by a wRC+ of 166.
Looking ahead, Tucker will of course be focused on working back from the plantar fasciitis that landed him on the injured list today. When he’s ready to be activated, he’ll have to be added to the active roster in San Diego, as Tucker does not have options remaining. He would figure to join a bench that currently includes Nelson Cruz, Brandon Dixon and Rougned Odor.
As for Felipe, the 25-year-old reliever has yet to make his big league debut and has struggled to a 6.20 ERA in 24 2/3 innings of work with the club’s Triple-A affiliate this season. Assuming the youngster goes unclaimed on waivers, it seems likely the club will assign outright Felipe to the minor leagues, where he would then act as bullpen depth for the club going forward.
Phillies should be all over Felipe.
Could be an insurance thing to help the player?
Doesn’t the opening say he had a pending opt out coming? They have to put him on 40 or he opts out. The fact that he is injured just requires the second step of IL.
That’s what came to mind after reading the post, for me anyway.
I suppose this will delay the re-introduction of his automobile !!!
Obscure reference. Most people here weren’t alive when the movie went to VHS…
People should be aware of this chapter of automotive history regardless of their age.
You are promoted, now go to the IL. That is funny. Guess they really didn’t want to lose that LHB off the bench later this season. Enough that they are eating up a 40 man roster spot for someone that is not going to play for at least 10 days.
Compared to the guy they let go that wasn’t ever going to play for them and it seems to make sense. They don’t want him on mlb team right now or they would have promoted him before the injury.
They get 10 days (minimum) and 20 days rehab (max) to hold onto him for decisions down the road.
It’s just business.
Felipe has great stuff, but has issues getting it over the plate. Its sad that he has never been able to put it all together. Do you think anyone will claim him?
If not then milb opportunities will be there because of his stuff but until he shows something better on the field he isn’t close to mlb. Never know what might click for these guys.
I’m sure that is exactly why Padres took a chance – didn’t work – next team up and good luck.
This is our son, Kyle. And this is our other son, Kyle’s brother.
Receive service time and don’t have to play nice
Tucker is destroying AAA at age 32, but he is nothing more than a AAAA player. A filler. But well worth holding onto in case
Felipe has extreme control issues. I doubt he gets claimed.
Yeah exactly my thought. I’d say every team has 2-3 guys in this situation where sometimes it just comes down to picking which one of 2 guys we keep watching and which guy is at the end of the line because of either a contract term or another player’s situation. See Crismat for example. Something had to give on Friday because his rehab time was up and thankfully, a hamstring (Cosgrove) got a little balky to buy a little time to kick the cam down the road a bit. If Crismat continues to suck well, or if he regained his 2022, well then.
Sometimes though you can catch lightening in a bottle with these guys. Tauchman, for example, is hitting everything, catching everything and is one of the reasons the Cubs have actually played well the past couple weeks.
You are correct. I think my suggestion that most likely all teams have 3-4 guys in this category and they get stuck having to pick one to let go every now and then while they wait. A starter comes off the 60 day (Suarez for example for Padres) creates a need to keep the known product over the bottle. Always have to have a few bottles on the shelf though.