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Jackson Merrill Jackson Merrill Back in action Saturday
Sat, May 23, 2026, 5:42 PM
Merrill (ribs) will start in center field and bat sixth Saturday against the Athletics.
Analysis: Merrill sat out Friday's contest to recover from his collision with the outfield wall Wednesday, but he's now been cleared to return to the starting nine. The young outfielder has been stuck in a slump recently, going just 3-for-34 (.088) with 12 strikeouts across his last 10 contests. |
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Ramon Laureano Ramon Laureano Riding pine Saturday
Sat, May 23, 2026, 5:38 PM
Laureano isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Athletics.
Analysis: Laureano will grab a seat on the bench Saturday after going 1-for-3 with a solo homer in Friday's series opener. His absence will move Gavin Sheets into left field, opening up first base for Ty France. |
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Xander Bogaerts Xander Bogaerts Sitting Saturday
Sat, May 23, 2026, 5:34 PM
Bogaerts isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Athletics.
Analysis: Bogaerts will take a day to regroup Saturday after going just 1-for-17 with six strikeouts over his last five games. Sung-Mun Song will replace him as San Diego's shortstop and bat ninth. |
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Freddy Fermin Freddy Fermin Sitting Friday
Fri, May 22, 2026, 4:20 PM
Fermin is not in the Padres' starting lineup against the Athletics on Friday.
Analysis: Fermin will get a breather Friday while Rodolfo Duran starts behind home plate and bats ninth. Fermin has struggled at the plate this season, and since May 1 he's gone 5-for-40 (.125) with a 2:9 BB:K. |
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Jackson Merrill Jackson Merrill Not in Friday's lineup
Fri, May 22, 2026, 4:18 PM
Merrill (ribs) is not in the Padres' starting lineup against the Athletics on Friday.
Analysis: As expected, Merrill will not be in Friday's lineup after sustaining a rib injury while colliding with the outfield wall during Wednesday's game against the Dodgers. Ramon Laureano, Bryce Johnson and Nick Castellanos will man the outfield from left to right for San Diego in Merrill's absence. |
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Jackson Merrill Jackson Merrill Expected to avoid injured list
Fri, May 22, 2026, 3:57 PM
Merrill (ribs) is expected to return to the Padres' lineup within the next few days, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Analysis: Merrill's ribs remain sore after he banged into the outfield wall Wednesday against the Dodgers while trying to rob a home run. He has managed to avoid a serious injury, and while it sounds like Merrill will not play Friday versus the Athletics, he could be back in action sometime over the weekend. |
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Jackson Merrill Jackson Merrill Pulled early Wednesday
Wed, May 20, 2026, 8:58 PM
Merrill was removed from Wednesday's game against the Dodgers with an apparent back injury, Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com reports.
Analysis: The young outfielder appeared to tweak something while trying to rob Shohei Ohtani's home run in the first inning, and Merrill was later taken out of the game at the start of the fifth. The Padres will likely send him in for imaging to determine the severity of his injury, and if he has to miss any time, Bryce Johnson would be in line to pick up starts in center field. |
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Nick Castellanos Nick Castellanos Gaining foothold in lineup
Wed, May 20, 2026, 6:27 PM
Castellanos will start in right field and bat seventh in Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.
Analysis: With Fernando Tatis seeing the bulk of his playing time at second base of late in the absence of Jake Cronenworth (concussion), Castellanos has begun to seize control of a near-everyday role in the corner outfield. The Padres will include him in the lineup Wednesday for the seventh time in nine games. |
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Ramon Laureano Ramon Laureano Sitting Tuesday
Tue, May 19, 2026, 5:50 PM
Laureano is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Dodgers.
Analysis: Laureano has a .454 OPS and 37 percent strikeout rate through 16 games in May and will head to the bench after starting the previous five contests. Gavin Sheets will shift to left field while Ty France picks up a start at first base Tuesday. |
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Xander Bogaerts Xander Bogaerts Swipes two bags Sunday
Mon, May 18, 2026, 1:02 PM
Bogaerts went 0-for-3 with a walk, a run and two stolen bases in an 8-3 win against the Mariners on Sunday.
Analysis: Bogaerts made the most of his lone time reaching base, swiping second and third base before coming around to score following a fifth-inning walk. He has two multi-steal games this season to account for more than half his seven total swipes. While he isn't the most thrilling fantasy shortstop, Bogaerts has been moderately productive, slashing .258/.331/.405 with seven home runs, 23 RBI and 22 runs to go along with the seven thefts. |
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Alek Jacob Alek Jacob Returns to Triple-A
Sun, May 17, 2026, 1:02 PM
The Padres optioned Jacob to Triple-A El Paso on Sunday.
Analysis: Jacob was called up by San Diego on Friday and will return to El Paso after giving up two runs without recording an out in Saturday's contest. Sunday's starting pitcher Lucas Giolito was called up from Triple-A in a corresponding move. |
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Lucas Giolito Lucas Giolito Promoted for season debut
Sun, May 17, 2026, 12:38 PM
The Padres recalled Giolito from Triple-A El Paso to start Sunday's game against the Mariners.
Analysis: After making four starts in the minor leagues, Giolito is ready to make his 2026 major-league debut. The right-hander built up to 74 pitches over six innings during his last outing with Double-A San Antonio, so he shouldn't have significant workload limitations in his first outing for San Diego. Giolito posted a 3.41 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 121:56 K:BB across 145 regular-season innings with the Red Sox last season, but he was unable to land a contract for 2026 until signing with the Friars in late April. |
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Gavin Sheets Gavin Sheets Remains hot Saturday
Sat, May 16, 2026, 11:25 PM
Sheets went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and two walks Saturday in a 7-4 win against the Mariners.
Analysis: Sheets began the scoring for San Diego with a solo blast to right-center field in the second inning. He added a pair of walks to reach base multiple times for the fifth straight game. Over that stretch, Sheets is batting a robust 7-for-13 with two homers, four RBI, a stolen base and five walks while striking out just once. He's now started eight straight games for the Padres, splitting his time between first base, left field and DH. |
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Nick Castellanos Nick Castellanos Clubs three-run homer
Sat, May 16, 2026, 11:19 PM
Castellanos went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run Saturday in a 7-4 win against Seattle.
Analysis: Castellanos pushed San Diego's lead to 5-0 with a three run-blast to center field in the fourth inning. It was his second homer in his past five games after he went deep just once across his first 23 contests of the campaign. Castellanos has largely struggled to make an impact in his first season with the Padres, as he's slashing just .205/.237/.364 with three long balls through 29 games, though he does have 18 RBI. |
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Jeremiah Estrada Jeremiah Estrada Picks up save Saturday
Sat, May 16, 2026, 11:05 PM
Estrada earned a save against the Mariners on Saturday, allowing one hit and one walk over one scoreless inning.
Analysis: Estrada entered in the ninth inning with San Diego up by three runs. He got into some trouble by issuing a walk and allowing a single with one out, but the right-hander retired the next two batters to close out the San Diego win. Estrada's save was his first of the season and fifth of his career. Mason Miller has been arguably the best closer in baseball this season, but he was presumably unavailable after throwing 34 pitches in a save Friday. With that in mind, Estrada isn't likely to see many save chances moving forward. |
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Walker Buehler Walker Buehler Records third victory
Sat, May 16, 2026, 10:55 PM
Buehler (3-2) allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out six batters over five innings to earn the win over Seattle on Saturday.
Analysis: Buehler was staked to a 5-0 lead before he gave up a run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The right-hander yielded one more run in the fifth and didn't return for the sixth, as he had already thrown 101 pitches by that point. Buehler recorded just seven whiffs in the outing, but he struck out six batters, registering his second-most punchouts in a start this season. The veteran hurler has had his share of struggles this season, but he's managed to hang on to a rotation spot in part due to a positive 3-2 record. Beyond that, Buehler hasn't been an appealing fantasy asset, registering a 5.01 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 37:14 K:BB across 41.1 innings spanning nine starts. |
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Matt Waldron Matt Waldron Lands on 15-day IL
Fri, May 15, 2026, 6:34 PM
The Padres placed Waldron on the 15-day injured list Friday due to a right brachialis muscle injury.
Analysis: Waldron was initially DFA'd by the Padres earlier in the day, but he'll instead go on the injured list with a forearm injury. It's his second stint on the 15-day IL this season, with a lower body injury causing him to miss the first three weeks of the 2026 campaign. Right-hander Alek Jacob was recalled from Triple-A El Paso in a corresponding move. |
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Matt Waldron Matt Waldron Removed from 40-man roster
Fri, May 15, 2026, 3:01 PM
The Padres designated Waldron for assignment Friday, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Analysis: Waldron has failed to gain much traction with the Padres the last two seasons, posting an 8.36 ERA and 25:13 K:BB over 28 innings covering four starts and three relief outings. The knuckleballer has a chance to clear waivers, and if that happens, he could stick around as swingman depth at Triple-A El Paso. |
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Alek Jacob Alek Jacob Rejoins big-league bullpen
Fri, May 15, 2026, 2:56 PM
The Padres recalled Jacob from Triple-A El Paso on Friday, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Analysis: Jacob turned in two scoreless innings in an appearance for the Padres earlier this season and holds a 4.08 ERA and 18:10 K:BB over 17.2 frames with El Paso. He will likely be sent back down when Lucas Giolito joins the rotation later this weekend. |
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German Marquez German Marquez Expected to resume throwing soon
Thu, May 14, 2026, 11:19 PM
Marquez (forearm) is scheduled to begin a throwing program in mid-May, per MLB.com.
Analysis: Marquez landed on the injured list May 3 following a rough outing two days earlier. If all goes to plan, he'll have had about two weeks of rest before he begins a throwing program. Marquez will likely need considerable time to build back up, so he probably won't be ready to be activated until at least early June. |
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