On Friday, Matt Carpenter exercised his $5.5MM player option to return to your San Diego Padres. The 37-year-old returns to the club after a down year in 2023 where he saw himself essentially banished from playing in the second half of the season.
Prior to 2023, Carpenter signed a somewhat shocking 2-year $12MM deal with the second of those years being a $5.5MM player option. He chose to exercise that option and return as a left-handed DH option for the club.
The Padres hoped to ride the momentum Carpenter built with the Yankees in 2022. Unfortunately, he was unable to do that and underperformed expectations.
In 2023 Carpenter hit just five home runs with a .176 batting average. This lack of production came with decreased playing time towards the end of the season. Despite being healthy all season, Carpenter only appeared in 76 games.
Even with this signing, the front office will no doubt be looking for a different, more reliable designated hitter for 2024.
Matt Carpenter will be an unrestricted free agent in 2025 at the age of 38. He's a likely DFA candidate before the beginning of next season.
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