The San Diego Padres signed Nick Castellanos this offseason to bolster their bench. This came after the veteran was released by the Philadelphia Phillies in the final year of his 5-year, $100 million contract. The Phils are paying Castellanos $20 million to play against them this year. The Friars picked him up on a league-minimum $780K contract in February.
An Uninspiring Spring Training
Castellanos didn’t have the best Spring Training, slashing .200/.308/.378 with a .686 OPS. He also hit just two homers in Cactus League play. That said, Castellanos was likely always going to be on the Padres’ Opening Day roster. His pedigree as a big-league slugger was much more of the reasoning for his role as a bench player with the Friars.
Since then, he has wildly underperformed in spite of some clutch moments in the brown and gold. That led to Castellanos being designated for assignment on Wednesday morning ahead of the Padres’ Game 2 against the Phillies. In a corresponding move, Samad Taylor was recalled from Triple-A El Paso.
A Brief Tenure With the Friars
Castellanos spent just 59 games with the Friars, playing in 39 of those contests. He turned into the starting right fielder in manager Craig Stammen’s recent offense-first approach to the lineup. That move shifted star outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. to second base. It remains to be seen if Tatis will move back now that Taylor has been called up to the big-league club.
In his short time with San Diego, Castellanos was unimpressive. He slashed .191/.221/.339 with a dismal .560 OPS and four homers. Castellanos’s glove was even less impressive, with the slugger being historically known for his bat.
Moments of Success
That being said, Castellanos had some flashes of potential. Two of his four homers were particularly noteworthy. His first of the season came against the Chicago Cubs. With the Padres down, 3-1, in the fifth inning, Castellanos hit a moonshot to left field for a game-tying, two-run homer. It ended up being inconsequential, with the Friars losing the game, 5-4.
His other moment was much more important. In the bottom of the ninth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego was facing the possibility of a series loss to St. Louis. Facing one of baseball’s hottest closers, Riley O’Brien, and down to their final strike, Castellanos lifted a sinker for yet another game-tying two-run homer. It sent the Padres to extra innings, where San Diego would win the game and split the series with the Cards.
The Speedster Gets Called Up
Samad Taylor made his 2026 debut on Wednesday, pinch-hitting for catcher Rodolfo Durán in the eighth inning against Philadelphia. He went 0-for-2 at the plate with a groundout and a strikeout. He’s produced well in the minors, batting .319/.406/.500 with a .906 OPS through 51 games in Triple-A. Taylor’s also managed to record 17 extra-base hits (seven home runs) in that time.
Taylor’s Solid Cactus League Performance
The speedster had an unimpressive but respectable Spring Training with the Friars, batting .233 with a .565 OPS. That was mostly due to a horrid second half after getting off to an incredible hot start with the club. During the first week of Cactus League play, Taylor hit .556 with a 1.278 OPS. That production tailed off almost immediately, but seems to have resurged in his season with Triple-A so far.
Taylor has played second base and outfield in the minors this season, though he’s known much more as a corner outfielder than an infield player. 41 of his 53 games have come in the corner outfield positions, with only five played at second base. That gives the Friars options to shift around their lineup later in games, though Taylor will likely not start at the keystone position often.
A Lack of Big-League Success
That’s due mostly to an absence of success in the big leagues. Taylor owns a career .200/.265/.253 slash line with a .518 OPS across parts of four seasons in the majors. His longest stint came in 2023 when he spent 31 games with the Kansas City Royals. Taylor also played seven games between 2024-25 for the Seattle Mariners, though he was unimpressive.
He’s yet to break out at the major-league level. If he can finally do so, it would provide an incredible boost to the Padres’ otherwise middling offensive production. Taylor has continued to impress in the minor leagues, but it hasn’t translated to the majors. It remains to be seen how long the speedster will have to prove himself with San Diego.
Main Image Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
