Luis Campusano is finally breaking out, and it couldn’t be better timing for the San Diego Padres. With their other catcher, 2025 trade deadline acquisition Freddy Fermin, struggling at the plate to start the year (.186/.315/.571 slash line), Campusano has been a much more reliable offensive threat behind the plate. Campusano has opened the season slashing .350/.395/.750 with a 1.145 OPS. He and Fermin have shared backstop duties, with Campusano starting 14 games for the Friars. In that time, he’s slugged three home runs (two in the last four games) and driven in nine runs.
Could the young catcher finally be having his breakout moment? It certainly seems like it. If that production at the plate can keep up, it would mark a major offensive boost for the Padres at one of the only positions in baseball where teams are comfortable with an offensive deficit.
The Triple-A Merchant
Campusano has long been known by this moniker by the Friar Faithful. That’s due to a ridiculously good stat line in the Padres’ minor league systems. Across eight seasons in the minors, Campusano has produced a .308/.384/.498 slash line with a .882 OPS. That’s production that gets most players called up to the majors. So why has the backstop stayed put?
It’s a difficult truth in the major leagues that there are certain guys who, although they put up great numbers in the minors, never quite hit their stride against big-league pitching. That’s been the case for Campusano in the past. He’s been shuttled between the big-league club and Triple-A, mostly as either a third catcher on the roster or to replace an injured player.
His longest stint with the club came in 2024, when Campusano played in 91 games as the backup catcher behind starter Kyle Higashioka. He put up an uninspiring campaign, slashing .227/.281/.361, and was relegated to the minors for most of 2025 apart from call-ups that were few and far between. Not many fans would have blamed the Padres for moving on from Campusano at that point. But they stuck with him.
Managerial Confidence Changing
In 2025, Campusano played under then-manager Mike Shildt. Shildt was a great manager in many ways for the Friars. He led the club to consecutive 90-win seasons and postseason appearances. But one thing he never did well was utilize Campusano. Shildt never quite trusted his defensive makeup behind the plate, which had always been rated poorly. His bat had been the most compelling case to call him up, and whenever that went, so too did Campusano back to the minors. The Padres simply couldn’t solve the catcher position during Shildt’s tenure.
That’s changed (almost on a dime) with the hiring of manager Craig Stammen this offseason. Stammen has been a grounding presence, much more so than the oft-described anxious presence that Shildt was in the clubhouse. He’s guided the club to an 18-9 record to open the year, and he’s shown confidence in Campusano’s ability as a catcher.
Luis Campusano today:
110 MPH RBI double
421 ft HR w/105.9 MPH EVHe’s now hitting .359 on the season with a 1.174 OPS.
He’s coming off a AAA season in which he hit 25 doubles & 25 HR in 105 games, combined with a .336 BA.
Please just let it be. pic.twitter.com/aYmtBxVg3q
— LouisAnalysis (@LouisAnalysis) April 26, 2026
It’s true that Luis Campusano likely had to be on the Padres’ 26-man roster to start this season. He was out of minor-league options, and the Padres didn’t want to expose him to waivers or trade him. But Fermin has the ability to be a primary catcher. He could have caught almost every day with Campusano sprinkled in. Instead, Stammen was confident in Campusano and Fermin splitting the workload behind the dish. That’s paid off in a major way, with Campusano becoming a better offensive option than Fermin. If that production can continue, San Diego may have finally unlocked a hitter who was once ranked third in MLB among catching prospects (2021).
Main Photo Credit: Andy Lyons/Getty Images
