Padres’ new catcher signing might be worst possible Kyle Higashioka replacement

The San Diego Padres have a number of needs this offseason that, in an ideal world, they would like to address, including the rotation and the outfield vacancy left by Jurickson Profar’s departure; but one area they have to figure out is at catcher.

Kyle Higashioka was great when pressed into duty in 2024, but his performance priced him out of the Padres’ comfort zone apparently and he ended up going to the Rangers earlier this offseason. Elias Diaz also hit free agency and while San Diego decided to keep Luis Campusano around, relying on him to get the bulk of the catching duties would be quite the life choice to make.

Unfortunately, there are not a lot of ideal free agent catchers around to bridge the gap until vaunted prospect Ethan Salas is ready for the big leagues. However, the financial picture for the Padres has to be pretty bleak if signing the ghost of Martin Maldonado is the best they can do.

Agreement is a minor-league deal with an NRI. https://t.co/SGdpPKep8c

— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) January 16, 2025

Padres signing Martin Maldonado absolutely reeks of desperation

So, the good news here is that Maldonado’s deal is a MiLB deal, so there is no actual financial risk for San Diego if things don’t work out which seems extremely likely. Taking a flyer on a veteran is commonplace this time of year and the Padres have to have somebody behind the plate next season.

The bad news is that Maldonado is 38 years old, is the type of player that managers fall in love with because of their “grit” but who actually don’t perform at a big league level, and he hasn’t hit above .200 since the pandemic. There was a time where one could at least rely on his game-calling and defense for some value, but that ship sailed a couple years ago. His last season in Houston was one of the worst seasons in recent history period and his time with the White Sox in 2024 was short and somehow worse than that.

Was 50-year-old and very retired Jason Kendall not available? San Diego has great weather he could have enjoyed in between starts. While the Padres are at it, why not call up the Angels and see if they are interested in a bad contract swap and take a flyer on Anthony Rendon? He was good years ago, too. There has to be some 45-year-old on the Yankees’ roster that they were planning on giving 300 plate appearances to that they could have traded for instead of Maldonado.

If the Padres decide to make an actual move for a catcher that can play the bulk of the time behind the plate, then no one is likely to remember them signing Maldonado and no harm will be done. However, if this is the only guy that they can afford right now and he gets meaningful playing time, Padres fans should be understandably concerned about the direction of the franchise heading into 2025.