Padres Linked to Breakout Catchers to Solve Biggest Issue at Trade Deadline

Yahoo Sports senior writer Jake Mintz believes the San Diego Padres need to go about trading for a catcher before the trade deadline, and suggested breakout catchers Tyler Heineman and Liam Hicks as potential candidates.

"The Elias Díaz/Martín Maldonado combo behind the plate has been a disaster," wrote Mintz. "It’s really hard to upgrade at that position in-season, given how important catcher-pitcher relationships are, but the Padres may have no choice."

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Padres catchers this season have the third lowest wRC+ among catchers across MLB this season, and place in the bottom third of the league in defensive runs saved, with -1. Diaz and Maldonado both struggle offensively, and neither have an OPS+ anywhere near league average. Diaz is batting .214 and has three hits in his last 10 games. Maldonado on the other hand is batting .179 and striking out 32.6% of the time.

Diaz is getting the larger share of games this year, but has not shown the same offensive skillset he showed with the Colorado Rockies and Pittsburgh Pirates. He made an All-Star game in 2023 with the Rockies and was a career .250 batter before landing in San Diego last year.

If the duo are unable to start producing numbers, the Padres won't have a choice but to begin shopping around, especially if Heineman and Hicks are available.

Heineman has struggled for time during 2025, serving as backup to Alejandro Kirk on the Toronto Blue Jays. He's had a great year at the plate despite his limited appearances, batting .404 with a home run and nine runs batted in through 20 games. He is a career journeyman, and has played for five teams in the Major Leagues.

Hicks, a rookie, is receiving much more game time than Heineman, and he has impressive numbers through his first few months in MLB. The 26-year-old has struck out just 15 times through 102 at-bats this season, and is slashing .284/.357/.480 through 39 games.

Heineman and Hicks are both upgrades, and would be relatively low-cost improvements to the team. If the Padres want to remain competitive, they should add an offensively capable catcher to their list of necessities.

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