The San Diego Padres pulled off one of the more underrated signings of the offseason on Wednesday.
Padres add former Mets star Jose Iglesias
According to FanSided’s Robert Murray, the Padres have acquired free agent star slugger Jose Iglesias (h/t SNY). Iglesias and his former team, the New York Mets, were unable to come to terms on another deal this winter. The Mets cited cap space and prioritizing youth development as reasons why they refrained from bringing him back.
Iglesias will bring strong batting average to Padres
San Diego will benefit from having the 35-year-old on their team next season. Iglesias batted .337 in 2024. He owns a praiseworthy .283 career batting average.
The Padres already have a wealth of power hitters and efficient sluggers. The righty talent will give them another sure bet to get on base at a high rate, which could service them early or in the middle of their batting order. Iglesias could be reliable out of their fifth slot or the seventh spot.
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Not only so, but he was stout in the infield last season as well. The longtime utility man sported a .990 fielding percentage at third base, a .980 percentage at second base, and produced 154 assists to only three errors in 2024 out of those slots. San Diego pulled off a major under-the-radar signing that will likely prove beneficial in their World Series pursuits.
