Padres Seem to Have Hit Jackpot With Offseason Addition

The San Diego Padres had a relatively quiet offseason — that is, until February rolled around.

In February, the Padres made a handful of minor league additions, and many of them are currently competing for roster spots ahead of Opening Day.

However, one player the Padres added on a minor league deal in December may just turn into their best addition this winter.

Jose Miranda is a former top prospect of the Minnesota Twins. The former second-round pick in 2016 was a top 30 prospect in the Twins organization from 2017-22, ranking as high as No. 3 in 2022, per MLB Pipeline.

Miranda debuted in 2022, breaking out with 15 home runs, 66 runs batted in and an OPS of .751 across 125 games. He then missed a majority of the 2023 season with a shoulder injury before putting together a solid 2024 campaign, hitting .284 with nine home runs, 49 RBIs and an OPS of .763.

Struggles in 2025 led the Twins to outright Miranda off the 40-man roster. He rejected the minor league assignment, elected free agency and joined the Padres on a minor league deal.

“I feel like there’s some time in life, points in life, and especially in this career, that teams are going one way and you’re going another way,” Miranda said to the San Diego Union-Tribune about his decision to leave Minnesota this offseason. “I feel like in that moment, we’re going in opposite directions and I thought it was better for me to maybe get a fresh new start and experience something different.”

San Diego was different, and thus far, Miranda has looked like a steal.

Across 18 Cactus League games, Miranda is hitting .325 (13-for-40) with two home runs, nine RBIs and an OPS of .961. He's inserted himself into the Opening Day roster competition for one of the final bench spots, and at this point, should be a favorite.

Manager Craig Stammen was recently asked about what Miranda could bring to the team this season, and had high praise for the 27-year-old.

“Miranda, from what he’s showing in spring training, can hit, can hit for power. And when you got a guy like that possibly sitting on your bench, you know, maybe, if they’ve got a lefty reliever that they want to bring in to face one of our lefties, we can throw Jose in there and he maybe pops a homer or two for us," Stammen said.

Miranda brings some defensive versatility as he can play both first and third base. While Manny Machado has the hot corner covered, he'll need plenty of days as the designated hitter, giving Miranda some runway to play there.

As for first base, there's a handful of players competing for time there in Gavin Sheets, Nick Castellanos and Miguel Andujar. Miranda can insert himself into that conversation with his bat.

“If you can hit," Stammen has said multiple times throughout this spring, "we’ll find a place for you.”

Miranda doesn't have opt outs in his contract until June, so he could theoretically open the season in Triple-A and continue to work toward an MLB call-up. However, he's not worrying about any of that, instead just focusing on what he can control.

“The only thing I can control right now is just going out there and having good at-bats and playing good defense," Miranda said. "Obviously, at the end of the day, they’re the ones that make decisions. Whatever they decide at the end, I’ll be happy because I put in my work and I feel good with what I’ve done.”

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