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Surprises Abound as Padres Announce 26-Man Opening Day Roster

Originally posted on Last Word On Sports
By Lincoln Zdunich | Last updated Mar 26, 2026 1:26 AM ET

The MLB regular season is finally upon us. The San Diego Padres have announced their 26-man roster, and with a few surprises included, the Friars are ready for the 2026 season.

Plenty of Surprises as Padres Announce Opening Day Roster

The Position Races Finally End

With Sung-Mun Song beginning the season with a short stint on the injured list, Ty France is on the 26-man roster. The Gold Glove first baseman will return to San Diego as a bench contributor for the club.

France raked his way onto the roster, finishing the spring with a .306/.352/.510 slash line. He also had 12 RBI across 19 games.

Surprising nobody, Luis Campusano is the backup catcher for Freddy Fermin. Miguel Andujar, Nick Castellanos, and Gavin Sheets will form a 1B/DH platoon.

After never playing a single game at the position, Castellanos had a fantastic spring at first base. In nine games at the position, he held a .980 fielding percentage.

Interestingly, though, Jase Bowen was beaten out by Bryce Johnson. Though Johnson is a much more regular contributor at the big-league level, Bowen had an incredible spring, hitting .296/.333/.630 through 25 Cactus League games.

That’s the unfortunate reality of constructing a 26-man roster, with Bowen on the outside looking in despite doing everything right this spring. Hopefully, he’ll get a look later this year as a depth option out of Triple-A.

Our 2026 Opening Day Roster. pic.twitter.com/aW4M0X8lEA

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) March 25, 2026

The Starting Rotation is Solidified

For now, the Friars are going with this starting five:

The Padres finally announced their Opening Day starting pitcher earlier this week and gave Pivetta the nod after his fantastic 2025. King will get the ball on Friday, hoping to rebound from last year’s injury-plagued campaign.

Joe Musgrove will begin the season on a brief IL stint, so the back end will be rounded out by Vásquez, Márquez, and Buehler. Vásquez figures to be a mainstay after his step forward last year, while Márquez and Buehler will occupy the back end.

Although Buehler had a better spring than Márquez, the latter was certain to be the fifth option with his big-league contract. Until Musgrove was certain to land on the IL, Buehler figured to be rotation depth, but will now open as the fifth starter on the squad.

Losing out on the rotation race are offseason additions Marco Gonzales and Triston McKenzie, alongside JP Sears and Matt Waldron. Griffin Canning will open the season on the IL while he rehabs from last season’s Achilles tear.

The Most Elite Bullpen in Baseball Gets Even Better

The first full year of closer Mason Miller should prove to be one of the best parts of the Padres’ season. Behind him are high-leverage relievers Jeremiah Estrada, Adrian Morejon, and David Morgan.

Wandy Peralta and Kyle Hart will serve as relievers who can cover multiple innings for the Friars serviceably. They’ll figure to be called on when the starters get bounced early.

Jason Adam will open the season with a brief IL stint despite hoping to be on the Opening Day roster. Alongside him is Yuki Matsui, who is still rehabbing after a groin injury that sidelined him from participating in the World Baseball Classic.

That leaves two spaces open for Bradgley Rodriguez and Ron Marinaccio. The former is a top prospect who impressed last season and this spring for the club. The latter served as a dominant reliever in Team Italy’s historic WBC run.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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