The Padres placed catcher Luis Campusano on the 10-day injured list today with a thumb contusion, per a team announcement. Catcher Brett Sullivan was recalled to the big league roster in a corresponding move. Fortunately, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune relays that the Padres don’t expect Campusano’s stay on the shelf to be a long one as it likely won’t require more than a minimum stay of ten days.
After a 2023 season where Campusano was limited to just 49 games by injuries but appeared to break out at the plate with a .319/.356/.491 slash line (good for a 134 wRC+), the former top prospect’s 2024 campaign has been somewhat disappointing. He’s appeared in 66 of the club’s games this year but has mustered only a .234/.282/.371 slash line, which even in the game’s current deflated offensive environment is good for a wRC+ of just 89. That’s hardly a terrible mark for a catcher, but it’s nonetheless a far cry from the offensive output San Diego was surely hoping for after Campusano flashed the ability to be a star-level bat behind the plate when healthy enough to take the field last year.
With the 25-year-old sidelined for the time being, veteran backup Kyle Higashioka figures to step in as the club’s regular behind the plate while Campusano heals up. That leaves backup duties to Sullivan, 30, who had a three-game stint with the Padres earlier this year after making his MLB debut with the club last season. In a 33-game cup of coffee with San Diego last year, Sullivan struggled to a .210/.244/.284 slash line in 86 trips to the plate and appeared to be below average defensively behind the plate both in terms of framing and controlling the running game, although he does have a reputation as a solid blocker.
While Campusano was the only player the Padres placed on the shelf today, he’s not the only member of their starting lineup nursing an noteworthy injury. As MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell explored last night, both Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jurickson Profar exited yesterday’s game against the Brewers due to injuries. Profar departed due to tendinitis in his left knee that he’s been dealing with throughout the season to this point, while Tatis left because of a left triceps contusion, though Cassavell notes that he also appeared to be favoring his right quad, which he notes the young star has been playing on despite an injury for weeks.
Both players were out of the lineup today, though Profar told reporters (including Cassavell) today that he would be available off the bench for today’s game against Milwaukee and that he’s been managing the injury successfully to the point where it isn’t getting worse. Manager Mike Shildt, for his part, indicated to reporters last night that the club wasn’t especially concerned about either Profar or Tatis and that both believed they could play through their current ailments.
It’s easy to see why the Padres wouldn’t want to lose either player to the injured list. In 80 games this season, Tatis has looked good with a .279/.354/.468 slash line (139 wRC+) with eight stolen bases, while Profar leads all NL hitters with a .415 on-base percentage and sports an even more impressive 162 wRC+ as the club’s everyday left fielder. With the duo standing out as perhaps the club’s two biggest run producers in a strong lineup that also features Manny Machado, Luis Arraez, and Jackson Merrill, it’s hard to measure how difficult things could get for the Padres if they were to lose Profar and Tatis for a significant period. After all, that strong offense has only translated to a 40-40 record to this point in the season that leaves them in the mix for an NL Wild Card spot among a group of eight teams that are within three games of .500.
Would the Padres trade Tatis? Tigers send Tork, Mize, Campos, Jung and Olsen to the Padres. Tigers get a SS Move Baez to utility for his last 3 years. It saves the Padres $300 mil.
The Padres are trying to win right now. They are in a better position then Detroit, and aren’t trading their best player for prospects and spare parts.
There are better ways for them to reduce payroll, if that’s their plan.
And if the plan includes trading Tatis away at some point, it would be during an offseason, not in the middle of a playoff push
I find it strange that the Padres struggle every year to make the playoffs. That roster should guarantee at least a wildcard every year. They have made the playoffs twice in the 5 years they have had Machado. They are struggling this year. They started opening the checkbook in 2014 and haven’t gotten anything to show for it They cut back in 2017, but then jumped back in hard in 2018. .
Nope. SD is in win-now mode. And Tatis is a fan favorite.
Tatis certainly COULD return to shortstop. But he hasn’t appeared there since 2021. (2022 was lost for him due to injury and suspension). He won the NL Gold Glove for RF last year, and is very likely to continue succeeding there. He has more MLB outfield innings than infield.
So the tigers just get Tatis and his contract, while keeping Baez and his contract? While also losing “failed” prospects along with promising prospects.
Only if the tigers agree to pay off machados contract as well. Then it’s a deal.
Of course Detroit will send over and pay out all the above for Tatis..but wait, there’s more.
Detroit will also take Bogaerts plus the dying embers of the Hosmer contract.. and all because everyone knows how Chris Ilitch loves to spend spend SPEND!
If you need a ss you might as well wait till off season and sign Kim for his defense.
Padres probably QO him but given Bogaerts and Cronenworth on long term deals padres probably move Bogaerts back to ss cronenworth back to 2B and leave Arraez at 1B.
They should target JD Martinez to be full time DH next year
Melchez mentioned getting Kim in the offseason in a previous post and if we are being realistic that makes a ton of sense. Baez is going to be a backup or cut this year unless there are drastic changes in his play. There won’t be.
I think the Tigers are too far in the hole to get back in the playoff convo. 5 hits a night is not going to do it. I could see them make trades geared towards next year. A young SS and a young catcher is something they need for the future. It’s more likely they fill some holes at the deadline trading Flaherty and other pitching, let the young kids continue to get developmental at bats and wait for the offseason to grab someone like Kim or even Bregman to fill holes and add offense.
Until then we Tigers fans are stuck with spitballing about unrealistic trades we know won’t happen because of how the team operates.
I really like the idea of Kim at short. I just get the feeling Harris won’t spend like that. He might look at Miguel Rojas types… older… less expensive.
Kim would be a really good add.
Or they could get Machado and Merrill instead, IF SD fell out of the WC race. Adjust the return going to SD slightly and just cut Baez.
Or, SD might find something useful on the Tigers roster and send a prospect to them instead. They are after all, holding down the last wildcard spot, while Detroit has to leapfrog 5 teams in order to grab the last spot in the AL
Realistically, the Tigers are unlikely to be buyers, at least not for big time pieces. Not unless they start playing a lot better in the next month.
Short answer: No
Long answer: Hell no!
Conversely, you are suggesting that the Tigers add $300 million in payroll while not unloading Baez to offset any cost. Zero chance Illitch signs off on that and bigger chance Harris would be fired for suggesting it…
@Rsox But think of how much the Tigers would be able to shirk elsewhere while still winning the same number of games with Tatis’ production. Also his AAV isn’t that high and he’ll be younger when the contract expires than Miggy was when his final extension started.
Personally I think they should go knock on Colorado’s door and offer a bad contract/change of scenery swap: Baez and good young pitching for Bryant and Amador. Baez can play all over the IF and the Rockies could explore shipping Rodgers out. Bryant can fill 1B/DH/LF. Tork is in the minors, Carp is still hurt, Malloy will still get ABs and I’ll be surprised if Canha doesn’t get traded at the deadline.
They both used to be good players. Maybe they need a fresh start.
No
Sheesh guys… I know it would never happen. I was just asking if it were possible.
Any trade is theoretically possible, but why ask about it if it isn’t going to happen?
I’m sure someone said “that’s not going to happen” when the Tigers picked up Cabrera from the Marlins too, or when SD got Soto from Wash. You never know what could happen especially with Preller!
Although, after turning down the extension offer from the Nats, it was widely accepted that Soto was on the trade block. Tatis has a ownership-friendly contract through 3034, loves SD, and the team likes him.
I never expected SD to be the ones who landed Soto. Preller always seems to come out of left field, and is willing to flip prospects that’s why I like him. He just seems to go for it. It takes two to tango though and I don’t know that Harris/Greenberg like to dance so far. I highly doubt he would even consider trading Tatis but who knows. It’s fun to what if.
@Melchez17 Then you answered your own question.
They wouldn’t trade with Detroit… Detroit has been a clown organization lately. But they might deal Tatis… they traded Soto. It would save them a lot of money. They could invest that money in some starting pitching. They could get some really good prospects for Tatis. Heck, the Dodgers would be interested… that would be wild trade.
Soto was a year away from leaving anyway and was going to cost north of a $40m AAV. Neither of those are true for Tatis.
But why would they want to trade Tatis? His contract is favorable to ownership (just $11M this year), and he’s a young star locked up and heading into his prime.. Ownership wants to compete for playoffs so they wouldn’t give up their best player for prospects.
Rough yr for campusano
Was supposed to take that next step to being an elite catcher
Very disappointing season & future outlook
Padres fans won’t like this but Campy will move off catcher permanently after 2024.
Hmmm, his defense is that bad eh? Could Campusano be a backup catcher who also plays a lot of DH and occasionally at 1b?
He did have Gary Sanchez as his “veteran mentor” last season so there’s that. Offensively i don’t think he’s shown enough to warrant a lot of DH AB’s. Might be better off as the RH part of a platoon if the Padres got a LH Catcher
It’s not that bad…
He’s perfectly fine as a platooner+ until Salas is gtg. Love the 1B/DH angle for him, too! His bat will get better- he’s essentially a rookie. Just get and stay healthy!
And Valenzuela!
With campys current bat he is moving off catcher because that bat doesn’t play at any other spot.
I have no idea why he dramatically changed his stance. Dude was raking last year.
He won’t take off his mask to see a pop foul or when a runner is trying to score. He gives away pitchers pitches when setting up. He’s cooked. Poor catching skills.
I’ve been wondering why this post has taken so long to get here. I mean if a Dodger or Yankee farts wrong it’s on here before the smell fades! These guys left the game LAST Night!
Some would say it’s been a Longtimecoming.
Judge’s farts never fade. Duh.
Kind of banged up. Hopefully they can get some rest.
Higgy has more than capable of handling catching duty, and quite clutch too as he hit walkoff homerun a week ago
There have been no medical reports about Tatis, just Schildt spinning positive roses as usual. We’re all waiting nervously on a formal announcement
Looking at Tatis’ numbers it appears he misses his special medicine. Still a good player but not amazing. Kind if lame he got that contract under false pretenses and gets to keep all that money besides the suspended part which he wasn’t making all that much anyways.
Please tell us is an OPS of .820 any good? Perhaps you missed him winning a platinum glove last year? He’s been as hot as anyone the last month or so. Also he had the same shoulder surgery as Bellinger, why don’t you go ask him how long it takes to get right from that
Keep hating idiot.
OPs+139, PG, and starting AS his contract is a steal for Pads, but okay if you say so Pink
His career OPS+ is 141, so he’s basically performing at that level this year
His career OPS was much higher before last year and this year. Like I said still a good player but not the superstar he appeared to be. Not without the supplements.
That can be argued, and have at it. But in the past month he has hit the way he did pre-surgeries. And you termed him now as only “good”, not great. While most familiar with baseball would agree his numbers this year coincide with a 5 star talent, certainly better than good.
I dunno… I look at Tatis’ baseball savant #’s and have no complaints whatsoever with his offensive production this year. He’s still one of the best bats in the game. People like to ignore the fact he had two wrist surgeries and a shoulder surgery in 2022 which make all those numbers even more impressive this year.
baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/fernando-tati…
You can’t be in the top 95th+ percentile in so many categories without being a special player.
Maybe he’s great now but he was elite. Is that better?
He’s not as good as he was. Perhaps it’s health related but as of today it appears steroid related.
Everyone will point to the PED suspension but they ignore that 2019 was the juiced ball, 2020 was only 60 games and 2021 Tatis enjoyed nearly a .400 batting average for balls in play while playing on the road. Add that to laundry list of significant injuries and learning how to play a new position after missing an entire year of baseball.
But why ignore the post- surgery recovery period and him playing through a quad injury this year? Fans are funny types.
He would probably recover quicker if he took the right pills. The illegal ones…..
Hopefully he won’t take your advice.
I see you’re still commenting on “numbers” but have no actual knowledge of what you’re talking about @blackpink
Look at his OPS before the suspension and after. It’s easy to do. Take a look. He went from elite player to really good player. Look it up.
Something was going on with the baseball in 2019 and something else happened in 2020… remind me what that was again….
Coming off serious injury
Didn’t play competitive baseball for over a year
Had to learn a new position
Earned a gold glove
The Padres will win the World Series this year because Mike Shildt is a great manger. It will be exactly like the Rangers last year with Bochy.
I don’t know why tatis don’t wear the elbow pad. Campys D is pretty bad.
Higgy as the starting catcher, good luck with that. He’s okay but not to be relied on every day.
Call the Tigers about Jake Rogers. Good defense and some power.
I am seeing the Padres listed as one of the suiters for Flaherty. It sounds like they should get a decent return for him based on the writeups I’ve read. Amongst the team I’ve seen listed, my thought is Milwaukee (Black) and especially Arizona (Barrosa, Cerda, Torin) have better pieces to offer that fit the Tigers needs, especially Arizona (no offence to Pads fans intended). I discount Baltimore since he’s been there with poor results and don’t seem to part easily with their prospects.
It sounds like the Pads have injuries right now. Do you need someone like Flaherty? Who do you guys have that might interest Detroit (the Tigers are lacking offense, SS and C prospects)? Someone posted above that you could be the Texas of 2024 and I agree.
@Motor. Assuming the injuries to Tatis and Profar don’t keep them out of the lineup, the Pads needs are primarily pitching. A quality RP (set up guy) and a good SP. They might also add depth bat. They’re unlikely to deal a rostered position player. They have $12M to work with below cap, and/or prospects. I doubt that they trade top prospects Salas, De Vries, Snelling or Lesko, but the later two might be packaged with midlevel prospects for a SP. Detroit might have interest in C prospect Valenzuela.
I love Lesko, even though he’s having a meh year again. I’d be excited to see Chris Fetter the pitching coach get ahold of him. Valenzuela seems to be playing better offence this year and it sounds like he has good defence.
Detroit has rentals Flaherty and Canha and lots of good RP. Could be a match there.
Lesko’s delivery and release point wasn’t consistent resulting in crazy high walk rate. They seem to have ironed things out lately – past 5 starts walks are way down. His ceiling is still very high. He’s very young at 20 and coming off TJS so patience is warranted.
Valenzuela is starting to get a lot of attention as he grows into his power.
Canha and Flaherty would be nice adds to Pads. Though RP is cheapest and most feasible.
Surprised Cro wasn’t mentioned as a run producer. Dude’s a baller.