San Diego Padres Winter League Report
September 1, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; San Diego Padres center fielder Alexi Amarista (5) hits an RBI single during the third inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
San Diego Padres prospects Yeison Asenscio and Rymer Liriano both made a few appearances in the Dominican this winter, but neither got a whole lot of playing time. However, Liriano’s lone hit was a home run, showing he still has the raw power he long displayed before undergoing Tommy John Surgery.
Dan Robertson got the most plate appearances of the Padres products in any winter league, 263. He hit .293 and got on-base at a .368 clip, but his slugging was under .400. He walked more than he struck out, and even stole 20 bags. The 28-year old utility man stands just 5’8”, but he has received a spring invite to big league camp.
Alberto Gonzalez has 1,023 plate appearances over seven big league seasons, most recently with the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees in 2013, and played 53 games in Venezuela this winter. He signed a minor league deal with a big league invite with the Padres in December. Gonzalez hit just .225 with an OPS of .589, which only one point lower than his career big league OPS.
Reymond Fuentes struck out too often this winter in Puerto Rico, and hit just .262 while only stealing three bags on seven attempts. His real value to the Padres will come in the form of defense in center, but he will need to hit better this spring if he has aspirations of making the opening day roster.
It is hard not to root for the diminutive Alexi Amarista, and you would have been rewarded for doing so this winter. He put up a triple slash of .303/.400/.423 while hitting two long balls and stealing bags in six of eight attempts.
You can watch Corey Adamson this weekend in the final series of the Australian Baseball League, as his Perth Heat take on the Canberra Cavalry. He has played center field for the Heat, where he led the team in triples and is third in batting average. The 21-year old Aussie played for team Australia in the 2013 World Baseball Classic, and hopes to be on the roster when the team takes on his big leagues club rivals, the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers, in the opening series festivities in Sydney this March.
30-year old catcher, Rene Rivera, played for two different squads in the Dominican this winter, but was left off the roster for the Caribbean Series. He did not hit well, but the veteran backstop should be a good mentor for stud catching prospect Austin Hedges.
Despite struggling in Venezuela, hitting under .250, Rico Noel has received an invite to big league camp this spring. The switch-hitting center fielder did show a good eye at the plate, posting an on-base percentage nearly 100 points better than his batting average. The 25-year old played all of 2013 at Double-A last season, but seems to be blocked by a very deep outfield in San Diego.
Oct 8, 2013; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Alex Torres (54) throws a pitch during the fifth inning of game four of the American League divisional series against the Boston Red Sox at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The San Diego Padres player that saw the most time on the hill this winter is a guy who did not play baseball at all in 2011, threw just under 40 innings in 2012, all in the Australian Baseball League, before finally making it back to the minor leagues in 2013. Back in 2011, John Hussey had lost the love for the game and essentially quit, but found himself at High-A in 2013, and this winter he threw just over 65 innings for Melbourne with an ERA just under 4. He will be 27 this year, and might get the bump up to Double-A. He may not be a big league candidate, but he is back with a new-found love for the game of baseball.
Juan Pablo Oramas is a 23-year old who got a taste of Double-A last season, and rolled through Mexico this winter. His career minor league K/BB ratio is near 3/1, has posted significantly more than a strikeout per inning, and an ERA of 3.03. In Mexico, his ratios dipped a bit, but his ERA was well under 3.00 in his eight starts.
Coming over in a trade from the Tampa Bay Rays, Alex Torres has already established himself as a solid left-handed option in the bullpen, where he has an unreal strikeout rate, and his inconsistent control doesn’t hurt him as bad as it would in the rotation. This winter in Venezuela, he did get all his work out of the starting rotation, and while his overall numbers look good, he neared a 6 BB/IP ratio, which should put to rest any thoughts of him ever pitching in a rotation in the big leagues.
27 year old reliever, Jorge Reyes, has spent back –to-back disappointing years in Triple-A, and took a trip down to Mexico this winter. His ERA was decent, 3.06, as was his WHIP, 1.27, but he blew two of the three save opportunities he had. That said, he did prove he is capable of pitching multiple innings in relief, which may benefit him moving forward.
Adys Portillo just made my list of the top 15 Padres prospects, coming in at 15, and pitched in two “winter” leagues this off-season, after struggling with injuries during the 2013 season. He combined for 19 1/3 innings between the Arizona Fall League and winter ball in Venezuela, putting up poor numbers in both leagues. This is not much of a surprise, as he only threw 9 1/3 innings in all of 2013, so the stats are not much of a concern, instead, the fact he got through multiple leagues healthy is a positive heading into the spring.
Brandon Kloess has seen at least part of three consecutive seasons at Triple-A, did not put up good numbers in Venezuela, and has not been invited to big league Spring Training as of yet.
Ruben Mejia also struggled, but he did it in the Dominican. Mejia will go into 2014 at the age of just 22, but has seen just under three innings as high as Double-A.