San Diego Padres first baseman Luis Arraez was rumored to be on the trade block this offseason, but MLB insider Mark Feinsand believes the 2024 NL batting champion is actually a top extension candidate.
“Arraez will earn $14 million in his final year before free agency, and while the three-time batting champion has played for three teams since the start of 2022, he’s put himself in position to cash in with a nice multi-year deal thanks to a .323 lifetime batting average and two straight 200-hit seasons,” Feinsand wrote. “San Diego appears interested in keeping Arraez in a Padres uniform, so perhaps the club will try to extend him before he becomes a free agent next fall. Despite a number of sizable financial commitments already in place beyond 2025, the Padres will have roughly $35 million coming off the books with Arraez, Michael King and Dylan Cease headed for free agency.”
In 2024, Arraez served as San Diego’s designated hitter in 46 of his 113 starts. However, it appears the Padres’ plan for Arraez will be different this season.
At this point, Arraez will likely serve solely as a first baseman, where he started 61 games last season.
“Our infielder guys — with Louie, Croney, Bogey, Manny — they’re everyday guys,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said, via The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Kevin Acee. “All those guys will have an opportunity to take a DH. But I don’t view Louie and Croney being like some rotation of DH. I think they’re everyday guys that’ll be on the field. Will they get opportunities to get off their feet and DH and create other opportunities to get guys on the field? Yes. But I don’t see that being anything other than those guys are everyday guys, and we expect them to go out and play really good defense and help us win games.”
Some potential candidates to serve as San Diego’s designated hitter include newly-signed Connor Joe and Gavin Sheets, both left-handed hitters. But the Padres can also look externally to find their designated hitter for 2025.
