Padres approach 2026 season with improved depth

Jace Bowen has legitimate five tools | MLB Photos via Getty Images Over the past several seasons the San Diego Padres’ president of baseball operations, A. J. Preller, has traded from the team’s minor league talent pool to acquire major league players.

In an effort to keep their window of contention open for as long as possible, the Friars have used their prospect capital to buy major league talent rather than develop that capital. That has resulted in the present minor league system being the lowest-ranked in baseball by many evaluators. Although the internal evaluations usually differ from the wide view, it cannot be argued that upper-level position player prospects are largely missing.

Preller spent most of his offseason signing free agent minor league players that the team believes will help in the present and the future. Through the course of spring games, some of that talent has had an opportunity to show some of their abilities. Even though the Spring Training environment is not the same as the regular season, the quality of some of the players should give the organization some minor league depth that has been lacking in years past.

Position player options The whole of spring has provided a platform for the bench competition that has multiple players vying for the last bench job available. When healthy, Sung-Mun Song will be the utility player for the Padres. He will start the season on the IL and will be built up as he recovers from a reoccurring oblique strain.