San Diego Padres pitcher Kyle Hart has earned himself a starting role on the 26-man roster for the 2025 season.
Padres: Kyle Hart makes successful big-league return
MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell revealed the Padres’ decision to make Hart their backend starter. He’ll join San Diego’s rotation alongside Randy Vasquez.
Hart brought his talents to the Padres after a stellar debut season in the Korea Baseball Organization. The 32-year-old won the league’s version of the Cy Young Award — the Choi Dong-Won Award — for the 2024 campaign.
The Ohio native went 13-3 with a 2.69 ERA and 1.03 WHIP along with 182 strikeouts. Once Hart got to San Diego, though, his output diminished in Spring Training. Hart posted a 9.39 ERA with seven strikeouts in 7.2 innings pitched.
Padres: Hart will see fixed role with Yu Darvish hurt
Nevertheless, the Padres liked what Hart brings to the table. He’ll be a necessary cog in San Diego’s rotation as former All-Star Yu Darvish will begin the 2025 campaign on the injured list due to elbow inflammation.
Thus, Hart will look to rebound from an uneventful lone season in the MLB dating back to 2020. The Indiana product will likely take the mound for the first time in San Diego’s third or fifth game of the season, with Michael King, Dylan Cease, and Nick Pivetta scheduled for the Opening Day, second, and fourth start,s respectively.
