The San Diego Padres are assembling quite the collection of former rivals.
San Diego is signing veteran MLB outfielder Alex Verdugo in free agency, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported on Sunday. Acee notes that Verdugo is getting a minor-league deal from the Padres and will be in minor-league camp.
Verdugo, the 29-year-old lefty hitter, began his MLB career with the rival Los Angeles Dodgers from 2017-19. He was a member of the Dodgers’ NL pennant-winning teams in 2017 and 2018 (though he was left off the playoff roster both times) and had a standout year in 2019 when he batted .294 with 12 home runs and 44 RBIs.
The Dodgers would trade Verdugo to the Boston Red Sox in 2020, and he has also since played for the New York Yankees (featuring on their AL pennant-winning team in 2024) and the Atlanta Braves. Last season for the Braves though, Verdugo was a negative WAR player, batting .239 with zero home runs and 12 RBIs through 56 games.
But at his price tag, Verdugo is a very low-risk flier for the Padres. With experience at all three outfield positions, Verdugo could end up as a situational guy behind San Diego’s projected outfield quartet of Ramon Laureano, Jackson Merrill, Fernando Tatis Jr, and the newly-signed Nick Castellanos.
Meanwhile, this continues on a notable theme of the Padres picking up former Dodgers. A couple of weeks ago, San Diego already signed a two-time Dodgers champion in free agency as well.
