What Are The Padres Catching Alternatives?
There isn’t much of a debate on the possible alternative options at the catcher position for the San Diego Padres. Austin Hedges is an outstanding defensive catcher, but the current makeup of the lineup can no longer hide his prolonged struggles with the bat.
Hedges is having another poor season (batting .188) at the plate and the results don’t seem to be changing any time soon. Granted, going through this extended slump has to be quite frustrating for him as well. If he could hit in the .250 range, then Hedges receives the bulk of the starts behind the plate and this topic is never discussed.
The Padres aren’t in dire straits for catching prospects within the organization, but none have developed their skills enough to become a viable candidate at the moment. The recent promotion of Austin Allen was more about his bat (.330 with 21 HRs and 67 RBIs with El Paso) as his catching skills pale in comparison. Allen could start a couple of the late September games to judge if he’s an option for the backup catcher position next season.
A couple of catchers to keep an eye on are Luis Campusano and Luis Torrens. Campusano has established himself as the Padres top catching prospect after being named co-MVP of the California League after hitting .320 with 15 HRs and 79 RBIs with Lake Elsinore this season.
Scouts rave about Campusano’s receiving and throwing skills from behind the plate and everyone is in agreement that the youngster is already a polished hitter. Padres fans might have forgotten about Torrens who was caught in the shuffle after spending the entire 2017 season in the majors. In that brief audition, the youngster showed good defensive skills despite being overmatched during the majority of his at-bats.