Padres Pull Off Stunning Signing! Former Top Prospect Pitcher Joins San Diego After Blockbuster Trade

The San Diego Padres have signed former top prosepct Luis Patino to a minor league contract, according to the team’s transaction log.

Patino originally debuted with the Padres but was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020 as part of the deal that brought Blake Snell to San Diego.

With the Rays, he rose as high as the No. 19 prospect in baseball in 2021. In 2023, the Rays traded him to the Chicago White Sox, but the Padres reclaimed him off waivers later that same year. After non-tendering him this offseason, San Diego was able to bring him back once again.

The 25-year-old missed the entire 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April.

The Padres kept him on the 60-day injured list throughout the year and ultimately chose not to tender him a contract in November.

With a projected arbitration salary of $800,000 — slightly above the MLB minimum — San Diego decided against keeping him on the 40-man roster for the winter. Instead, they allowed him to become a free agent, later bringing him back without committing a roster spot.

Due to the timing of his surgery, Patino is expected to be out until at least the middle of next season. He’ll likely work his way back through various minor league levels before potentially landing with Triple-A El Paso.

Patino has yet to find sustained success at either the major league or Triple-A level, but he was once considered one of the sport’s most talented pitching prospects.

Patino was arguably the headliner of the four-player package that San Diego sent to the Rays for Snell and the Friars brought him back via waivers last offseason. He is out of options, so if the Padres call him up once he gets healthy, they’d need to keep him in the majors or expose him to waivers.

The Colombian-born righty has a 5.12 ERA in 123 innings at the Triple-A level. Over four MLB seasons with the Padres, Rays, and White Sox, Patino has posted a 5.02 ERA in 136.1 innings. He has a 20.2 percent strikeout rate and has walked 11.4 percent of the batters he’s faced in the majors.