The Padres have signed outfielder David Peralta to a minor league deal and assigned him to Triple-A El Paso, per an announcement from the El Paso Chihuahuas (X link). The move comes just days after Peralta opted out of his previous minor league deal with the Cubs.
Peralta, 36, is very familiar with the NL West after spending all but 47 games of his 10-year big league career in the division. The veteran made his MLB debut with the Diamondbacks at the age of 26 back in 2014 and spent the better part of nine years patrolling the outfield in Arizona. A generally solid left-handed bat who could be relied on for production around 5-10% better than the league average, Peralta slashed a respectable .283/.340/.463 with a wRC+ of 111 during his time with Arizona, which included a Silver Slugger award in 2018 and a Gold Glove in left field in 2019.
Peralta’s Dbacks tenure came to an end at the 2022 trade deadline, when he was shipped to Tampa Bay in exchange for catching prospect Christian Cerda. Peralta’s power disappeared down the stretch with the Rays, however, as he failed to hit a home run throughout his Rays tenure and slashed just .255/.317/.335 in 161 trips to the plate with the club. Despite that downturn in production, the Dodgers rolled the dice on Peralta the following offseason and signed him to a one-year deal that guaranteed the veteran $6.5MM. Unfortunately, a return to the NL West did not revive Peralta’s bat as he hit a paltry .259/.294/.381 in 133 games with L.A. last season.
Looking ahead, Peralta figures to offer the Padres veteran depth in the outfield, an area where they’re severely lacking in reliable options. Fernando Tatis Jr. has locked down right field since moving off shortstop last season while journeyman Jurickson Profar is off to an incredible start for the club in left field and top shortstop prospect Jackson Merrill is taking to the center field job quite admirably while learning the position on the fly. Even so, an outfield mix of three converted infielders speaks to the lack of outfield depth in the Padres organization, leaving bench bat Jose Azocar as the only career outfielder on the club’s 40-man roster.
Given that, it’s easy to see Peralta breaking into the club’s outfield mix at the big league level should an injury the team to make a roster move. Until then, Peralta figures to act as non-roster depth for San Diego alongside fellow veterans Oscar Mercado and Tim Locastro at the Triple-A level, where Peralta. The 36-year-old will hope for better results at the Triple-A level in El Paso than he had during his time with the Cubs organization, as he was slashing just .217/.341/.348 in 20 games before he opted out.
Love this move!
Al west?
He’s familiar with the NL West, not AL
As they once told the closet hook, hang it up
“We like who we are” even though we’re way below .500.
1 game below is way below?
Username checks out.
Reds are 19-27. This one definitely belongs to the reds.
Pretty smart to go to El Paso if for no other reason than to boost your AAA stats some. The ball flies out of that park
At least he won’t be hitting against the Padres I think he has a pretty good lifetime average against them
“Even so, an outfield mix of three converted infielders speaks to the lack of outfield depth in the Padres organization”
I suppose this is true. But only Merrill entered spring training as a newbie to the outfield. Tatis took very well to the OF last year and won the gold glove award for right field. Profar has been primarily an outfielder for several years now.
This is good for Peralta who is only a couple more months in the majors away from qualifying for the full 10 year veteran pension.
The Padres’ signing of David Peralta is a prudent, low-risk move that addresses their immediate need for outfield depth with a veteran player. While his recent decline in performance tempers expectations, the potential benefits of his experience and familiarity with the NL West make this a neutral move with potential upside. If Peralta can find a semblance of his past form, he could become a valuable contributor, but the move also comes with the understanding that significant contributions are not guaranteed.
No chance he takes playing time from the Padres two best hitters, Profar and Merrill. But his 2023 stats, as bad as they were, are certainly big improvement over Machado and Bogaerts.
“Until then, Peralta figures to act as non-roster depth for San Diego alongside fellow veterans Oscar Mercado and Tim Locastro at the Triple-A level, where Peralta.” Huh!?
The padres who the last couple of years have been very low on depth are well positioned this year position player wise.
Higgy hasn’t been very good, most backup catchers are all that good.
Solano is an excellent bench piece.
Azocar who doesn’t hit for much is a very good fielder and is fast so he can pinch run late in games.
Wade can play multiple positions and is a good defender with good speed. So a lot like Azocar but from the left side.
Peralta adds depth in the outfield though likely only gets called up if there is an injury (currently would require one of Wade or Azocar to be sent down). He is not going to take playing time from tatis, Merrill and the raking profar. He could replace Azocar but he really doesn’t add defense or running that Azocar does. So Azocar provides better value from a bench stand point. Especially if they give Merrill a day off and need a center fielder to replace him. Though they could stick Wade in center so perhaps that’s what they decide.
Padres are going to be as good as their pitching is. So far their pitching has been inconsistent. Hence the .500 record or a game or two above or below. They will either need the pitching to get better or the big money guys xander, tatis and manny to really get hot to be any better than they have been.
Simm, I tend to agree with your assessments. With as bad as the big 3 are right now (in comparison their norms), I’ll say if they all 3 get the backs of their cards back to their averages, that will overcome some inconsistencies in the pitching though.
Comparing the league standings for each of Atlanta and SD in most big statistics categories and they are basically even across the board – yet the win/loss is very far different.
Odd game this baseball!
Pitching needs to be consistent, SP and set up RPs, if they are going to make playoffs. But I’m also concerned about the offense. RISP bugaboo is back, and Machado and Bogey are in a 1.5 year slump that is starting to look like the norm rather than slump. Other than Tatis, I’m not to confident another hitter will exceed 20 HR on season.
Brew, I’m all for pitching to be more consistent. My thought was they pitching has been really good or really bad, i.e. inconsistent and SD is hovering at .500. The big 3 have pretty much just been well below average (in relation to their stats) and SD is still .500. If the pitching stays about the same but the 3 normalize, there is a better team on the field, scoring runs and taking some pressure off a bad pen night or a bad SP night.
As for X, I don’t think it’s been the 1.5 years in total because his 2nd half / post cortisone shot and his first month last year weren’t bad. He had a horrible 6-8 weeks though waiting for that shot and yes, 2 months now.
If they can just normalize from here on, they can get back to their average. X has had a couple of games that hopefully, are the start of his. Manny, still waiting but it will be fun to watch him when he explodes.
I feel bad for X, he’s starting to look better though.
Manny was a 3 WAR guy from 2017-2020, and again in 2023. Makes me think 2021-22 were late career aberrations. I think he might struggle to reach even that this year. The big 3 needs to learn from the little 3 (Profar, Crone, Merrill)!
If Musgrove turns it around SP will be their strength. And maybe then they can beat the Rockies, cough
Zombie, I have to think the elbow is a big part even it’s just the mental aspect of dealing with it.
Best bench Preller has ever assembled (which has been a constant bugaboo during his tenure). It was nice to see them roll out six lefties yesterday; even if that was partially due to an injured starter, the flexibility is welcome.
BP is still a WIP, but they’ve got a setup man to pair with Suarez now. EDLS is a solid low-leverage guy. Matsui and Peralta are a bit redundant, but I get the need for multiple lefties with the Dodgers in the division. Morejon is doing quite well this year and may end up being their secret lefty option. Probably need at least one more high-leverage arm to bridge to Estrada and Peralta.
Oops, meant Estrada and Suarez.*
He would have been perfect for Cleveland
The only good Peralta is a Freddy Peralta.