The San Diego Padres could add a former All-Star bat to their order at designated hitter in 2025. The Padres do not have a DH on their roster at the present. The National League contenders have had free range to do so since 2022, when the NL adopted the designated hitter rule 49 years after it was established in the American League.
San Diego finished with the tenth-most home runs in the MLB in 2024 with 190 home runs, and No. 6 in on-base percentage at 32.4 percent. Nevertheless, having a pure slugger who can man the DH slot would be valuable for a team that fell short of reaching the 2024 World Series despite their potent array of All-MLB and All-Star sluggers.
Padres linked to 2x champ Joc Pederson to fill DH spot in free agency
Thus, Mike Ursery of the East Village Times labeled free agent and former Arizona Diamondbacks star slugger Joc Pederson as the man for the Padres’ vacant job:
“Entering his age 33 season, the left-handed slugger should expect phone calls from several teams. San Diego should be one of them. Pedersen brings lineaments the Padres need. He’s left-handed, has a load of postseason experience, and has an attitude the team lacked in this past season’s playoffs,” Ursery argued.
The California native has long carried a reputation for being an effective hitter in the MLB. Most recently, Pederson hit 23 home runs and drove in 64 RBIs while posting career-highs in batting average (.275 BA), on-base percentage (.393 OBP), and OPS (.908), the latter of which being his first time posting a peripheral north of .900 in that category.
Pederson could be a great addition for the middle of the Padres’ order
Pederson would have finished No. 3 on the Padres in homers had he been on the team last season, falling just one bomb shy of No. 2, which left fielder Jurickson Profar and center fielder Jackson Merrill occupied with their 24 long balls.
His ability to move runners along the bags would work wonders for the aforementioned two Padres hitters, as well as superstar third baseman Manny Machado, All-Star right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. and reigning three-time batting champion second baseman Luis Arraez.
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Further, Pederson is exceptional at generating walks. His 12.2 percent walk rate from 2024, which included 55 walks, ranked in the 94th percentile in the Majors. He’s a hard-hitting slugger for San Diego to take a hard look at.
With $149.5 million on their books for next season and a projected $205.2 million to be their eventual allocation, the franchise could make a play for the 11-year veteran who is coming off of a one-year, $12.5 million deal he signed with the D-Backs ahead of the 2024 campaign. He could be a key cog that takes them over the top next season.
