Padres Fortify Farm System: Yonathan Perlaza Signs Minor League Contract
After spending a year in South Korea with the Hanwha Eagles of the KBO, former Cubs outfield prospect Yonathan Perlaza has agreed to a minor league deal with the San Diego Padres, including an invite to big league spring training, sources tell Just Baseball.
Originally signed out of Venezuela as an infielder in 2015 for $1.3 million, Perlaza moved to the outfield full time ahead of the 2021 season as he continued to fill out. Around that time is where Perlaza started to see his power tick up as well, launching a career-high 15 homers in 99 High-A games in 2021 before hitting 23 home runs at both Double-A and Triple-A in each of the next two seasons.
After his 2023 campaign with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs where he slashed .284/.389/.534, Hanwha signed Perlaza to a one-year, $1 million deal. The 26-year-old switch hitter maintained a very similar level of production with the Eagles, hitting .275/.364/.486 with 24 home runs.
Beneath the hood, the batted ball data points towards above average pop, running a 90th percentile exit velocity of 105 MPH last season, the same figure he posted in Triple-A the year before. Perlaza has made a living feasting on fastballs along with a solid approach.
While equally productive from both sides of the plate, there’s concern about his ability to handle higher quality breaking stuff. Even with his solid performance in the KBO, he did not necessarily combat that narrative, posting an OPS around .660 against spin.
Perlaza should provide some solid depth for the Padres, who still have some outfield gaps to fill on the big league team both in the starting lineup and on the bench.
