San Diego Padres prospect watch: Ha-Seong Kim

Ha-Seong Kim playing for the San Diego Padres in a 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona. - photo by Joe Alexander
Ha-Seong Kim playing for the San Diego Padres in a 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona.
Ha-Seong Kim is on the verge of making his Major League Baseball debut. Though that technically makes him a rookie, it’s not like he doesn’t have much professional experience.

The San Diego Padres infielder had 3,195 at-bats in 891 games over seven seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization. He recorded a .294 career batting average with 133 home runs in the KBO.

Kim batted .306 in 2020 with a career-high 30 home runs in 138 games. He has batted better than .300 in three of the last four seasons.

The 24-year-old native of Korea was signed by the Padres as a free agent on Dec. 31, 2020.

San Diego Padres prospect watch: Jorge Mateo

Jorge Mateo playing in a San Diego Padres 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona. - photo by Joe Alexander
Jorge Mateo playing in a San Diego Padres 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona.
Today marks the first time Jorge Mateo is on a major league roster on opening day.

Mateo spent time in the big leagues last summer with the San Diego Padres and saw action in 22 games during the covid-shortened season. He earned his spot on this year’s Padres roster by batting .316 in the just completed big league spring training.

Mateo is officially listed as a shortstop but can also play second base and outfield. Since the Padres currently have only three outfielders listed on their active roster, that could be where he has the most opportunity.

The 6-footer from the Dominican Republic came to the Padres organization June 30, 2020 in a deal with the Oakland A’s. He made his major league debut on Aug. 13, playing for the Padres in a road game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Mateo has eight years of minor-league experience, including the 2019 season in the Pacific Coast League. He batted .289 with 19 home runs, 14 triples and 29 doubles in 119 games with the Las Vegas Aviators on the A’s organzation.

Mateo played in the Double-A Texas League in 2017 for Midland of the Oakland A’s organization. He batted .292 in with four home runs in 22 games with Midland. Mateo came to the A’s on July 31, 2017, as part of a four-player trade with the New York Yankees.

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Jorge Mateo playing in a San Diego Padres 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona.

Jorge Mateo playing in the outfield in a San Diego Padres 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona. - photo by Joe Alexander
Jorge Mateo playing in the outfield in a San Diego Padres 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona.

San Diego Padres prospect watch: Eguy Rosario

Eguy Rosario playing for the San Diego Padres during 2021 spring training in Arizona. - photo by Joe Alexander
Eguy Rosario playing for the San Diego Padres during 2021 spring training in Peoria, Arizona.
Eguy Rosario is the No. 18 ranked prospect in the San Diego Padres organization, according to MLB.com.

The 21-year-old infielder from the Dominican Republic was in the the Padres’ 2021 big league spring training camp as a non-roster invitee. He batted .219 with two home runs in 22 spring training games.

Rosario saw limited action with the San Antonio Missions in 2018, playing in three games in the Double-A Texas League. He spent most of 2018 in the Class-A Cal League and batted .239 with nine home runs in 121 games.

Rosario played in the Class-A Cal League again in 2019, batting .278 with seven home runs, eight triples and 25 doubles in 122 games.

San Diego Padres prospect watch: CJ Abrams

San Diego Padres infield prospect CJ Abrams playing at a 2021 spring training game in Arizona. - photo by Joe Alexander
San Diego Padres infield prospect CJ Abrams playing at a 2021 spring training game in Arizona.
CJ Abrams spent the spring of 2019 as the top high school baseball player in the state of Georgia.

Two years later he is coming off a strong showing in the San Diego Padres’ big league spring training.

Abrams appeared in 25 spring training games and batted .240 with two home runs, one double and one triple. He is listed as a shortstop. He played both middle infield positions at Blessed Trinity High School in Alpharetta, Ga.

Just 20 years old, the 6-foot-2 Abrams bats left and throws right.

The Padres drafted Abrams in the first round, No. 6 overall, in the 2019 draft. He made a big impression in his first summer as a pro, earning 2019 MVP honors in the rookie Arizona League. He batted .401 with three home runs, eight triples, 12 doubles and 14 stolen bases in 32 games. He also played two games in Class A that summer.

Like other players in the minors, Abrams doesn’t have any stats to show for the 2020 covid season. He still got to work with the Padres last summer at the team’s alternate site as part of their 60-man player pool.

Abrams is the No. 2 prospect in the San Diego Padres organization, according to recent rankings by MLB.com.

The Padres are expected to officially announce their opening day roster Wednesday. Here is a projected roster that was published Monday:
Possible opening day roster: By AJ Cassavell on MLB.com

Abrams is not listed on there. If that holds up, he would start the season in the minors or on the Padres’ pool of players at their alternate site.

San Diego Padres prospect watch: Luis Campusano

San Diego Padres catcher prospect Luis Campusano playing in a 2021 spring training game in Arizona. - photo by Joe Alexander
San Diego Padres catcher prospect Luis Campusano playing in a 2021 spring training game in Peoria, Arizona.
Luis Campusano is the No. 3 prospect in the San Diego Padres organization, according to MLB.com ratings.

His strong showing in spring training combined with the Padres’ need for another catcher due to an injury means Campusano will start the season in the majors. Multiple media reports from San Diego indicated Campusano was told today that he will be on the Padres’ opening day roster. He batted .279 in 20 games in the Padres’ 2021 spring training big league camp.

Campusano has played in only one major league game, having made his debut in the bigs last year in the covid-shortened 2020 season, and has never played in Double-A or Triple-A.

The 5-foot-11 catcher from Augusta, Georgia was drafted in the second round by the Padres in 2017. He spent that summer in rookie league, followed by Single-A ball in 2018 and 2019. He batted .325 with 15 home runs in 110 games in 2019.

His fast progression allowed him to jump over Double-A, meaning San Antonio Missions fans probably won’t ever get a chance to see him in person at Wolff Stadium.

San Diego Padres assign pitchers to Missions

The San Antonio Missions’ 2021 pitching staff is starting to take shape.

The San Diego Padres assigned pitcher Anderson Espinoza to the Missions on March 24.

The Padres assigned pitchers Reggie Lawson and Jordan Humphreys to the Missions on March 16.

– Espinoza pitched in one game for the Padres last summer, going one inning for his only major league experience. The 6-foot right-hander from Venezuela pitched in the minors at the rookie league and Single-A level in 2015 and 2016. He had Tommy John surgery in the summer of 2017.

– Lawson pitched in two games in relief for the Padres last season. The 6-4 right-hander pitched in six games, all starts, for Amarillo in the Texas League in 2019. He had a 3-1 record with a 5.20 ERA

– Humpreys was picked up by the Padres earlier this month after the San Francisco Giants designated him for assignment. The 6-2 right-hander pitched in 33 games in the minors in 2015-17 and missed the 2018 season due to injury. He pitched in two games in 2019.

The Missions will play this season in the Double-A Central League – basically the old Texas League, where the Missions have played throughout much of franchise history.

San Diego Padres prospects at big league spring training

The following players are on the list of the top 30 San Diego Padres prospects for 2021 as ranked by MLB.com and are on listed on the Padres’ big league spring training roster:

PITCHERS
No. player       position rank
1   Mackenzie Gore     LHP   1
40  Ryan Weathers      LHP   5
97  Justin Lange       RHP   7
79  Reggie Lawson      RHP   8
71  Mason Thompson     RHP  11
70  Anderson Espinoza  RHP  12
73  Reiss Knehr        RHP  13
98  Jagger Haynes      LHP  14
67  Steven Wilson      RHP  17
93  Mason Fox          RHP  22
39  Jordan Humphreys   RHP  24
99  Dauris Valdez      RHP  25

INFIELDERS
No. player       position rank
87 CJ Abrams            SS   2
88 Tucupita Marcano    INF   6
94 Eguy Rosario        INF  18

CATCHERS
No. player       position rank
21 Luis Campusano        C   3

OUTFIELDERS
No. player       position rank
90 Robert Hassell       OF   4
63 Jorge Ona            OF   9
95 Joshua Mears         OF  10

Complete Padres prospects list on MLB.com