This story was excerpted from AJ Cassavell’s Padres Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
It’s late August, and the Padres are making a serious postseason push, vying for their first National League West crown in 19 years. The focus is on 2025. As it should be.
But I think one of the most underdiscussed — and underappreciated — aspects of A.J. Preller’s Trade Deadline was just how well he set up this Padres offense moving forward. Specifically: How much the general manager checked off his offseason to-do list several months ahead of time.
It’s worth noting right now, with Ramón Laureano mashing and Freddy Fermin establishing himself behind the plate, San Diego was going to enter the offseason with two major questions on offense: left field and catcher. Not anymore.
In left field, Laureano has been a godsend. Through 25 games with the Padres, he is slashing .315/.370/.598 with six homers and 20 RBIs.
“I’ve just continued to be myself,” Laureano said. “Same thing I’ve been doing in Baltimore.”
That is so much easier said than done. The transition has been seamless. The Padres were already expected to pick up Laureano’s $6 million team option for next season. But given the way he’s performed — and the fit — that option looks especially team-friendly right now.
Laureano appears destined to become the Padres’ 2026 Opening Day left fielder. That was baked into the price the Padres paid the Orioles when they traded for him at the Deadline. But now they won’t need to spend any further resources looking for a left fielder this offseason.
At catcher, meanwhile, Fermin is under team control through the 2029 season. Playing in an everyday role for the first time, he’s been solid, batting .254 with a .632 OPS and a handful of key hits.
But it’s behind the plate where the transition was always most important. Teams don’t trade for catchers midseason very often. Especially contending teams. But the Padres’ catching situation was dire, and, as Preller said on Deadline day, “If you’re going to win a championship, you can’t have any weak links.”
The Padres were keenly aware how difficult it might be to assimilate a new catcher in-season. There are nuances of learning a pitching staff and a new organization. As such, they did plenty of background work on Fermin. Part of that entailed the usual scouting process — the tools and the physical gifts.
But a significant part of that entailed making sure Fermin would be the type of player who could handle such a transition. San Diego wouldn’t have made the move otherwise.
The Padres are 12-8 in the games Fermin has caught. He’s also getting a crash course in this pitching staff — and said he’s learning it faster than he would’ve in a spring-type setting.
“The learning process with them, doing it in such important games, such important moments, I think there’s a benefit to it,” Fermin said through interpreter Pedro Gutierrez.
Fermin is laying the groundwork for relationships with a number of these pitchers, who are also under control into next season and beyond.
“That’s a process that I want to build here, too, learning from each pitcher, going to their strengths,” Fermin said.
Fermin, of course, came with a much steeper price tag as it relates to 2026. The Padres dealt two potential rotation pieces in Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek to the Royals. The looming rotation questions are almost certainly the biggest of the offseason. Then again, San Diego has developed a knack for finding pitchers on the margins under pitching coach Ruben Niebla.
In any case, Fermin will almost certainly join Laureano in the Opening Day lineup next spring. Throw in the fact that Xander Bogaerts has proven he remains a more-than-capable shortstop (meaning Jake Cronenworth can stick at second, as well), and the Padres enter the offseason with a mostly settled offense.
It’s entirely beside the point right now. The playoff push takes precedent. But amid that playoff push, Laureano is raking and Fermin is anchoring the pitching staff — and that bodes well for the Padres’ offense through October and beyond.
