Padres Trim Roster to 67, Reassign Five Pitchers to Minors

Omar Cruz, the only one of the five reassigned pitchers with MLB experience, will open the season in minor‑league camp after San Diego cut its major‑league roster to 67 players, club sources said March 3. The Padres sent left‑handers Omar Cruz, Jagger Haynes and Ryan Och and right‑handers Manuel Castro and Justin Yeager to minor‑league camp with just over three weeks until Opening Day.

Cruz, 27, made his MLB debut with the Padres last season and posted a 4.91 ERA after allowing two earned runs in 3.2 big‑league innings in 2025. In spring training this year he allowed three earned runs across 2.2 innings, and SI noted that "He's a candidate to return to MLB at some point this season, but for now, will get started in the minor leagues after allowing three earned runs across 2.2 spring innings."

Justin Yeager, 28, was also reassigned after a split spring. Yeager signed a minor‑league deal with the Padres in early February after being drafted by the Atlanta Braves in 2019 and traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2022. His 2025 Triple‑A numbers were eye‑catching: in 18 appearances he posted a 0.84 ERA across 21.1 innings. Spring results were tougher, with six earned runs allowed in three innings for an 18.00 ERA, and SI assessed that "He could make his MLB debut at some point this season if he continues to pitch like he did last year in Triple‑A."

Left‑handers Jagger Haynes and Ryan Och were named among the reassignments as well; both are identified as left‑handed pitchers in the Padres' minor‑league system. Manuel Castro was reassigned as a right‑handed arm, and SI grouped Castro among "arms with recent Triple‑A experience" though the excerpts provided no additional statistics for Castro, Haynes or Och.

The March 3 moves reduced Major League camp from the 72 players who opened spring training to 67, a step described by National Today as "the first meaningful round of spring training cuts" as the Padres begin paring toward a 26‑man Opening Day roster. National Today reported the timing explicitly as March 3, 2026, and noted that the club will continue to evaluate its roster and make additional cuts as Opening Day approaches.

Separately, MLB reporter AJ Cassavell, datelined PEORIA, Ariz., listed an earlier round of reassignments that totaled 13 players, including position players Alex Dickerson, Seth Mejias‑Brean, Esteban Quiroz, Buddy Reed, Jacob Scavuzzo, Boog Powell and Allen Craig and pitchers T.J. Weir, Ryan Bollinger, Eric Stout, Jerry Keel, Kyle McGrath and David Bednar. Cassavell quoted manager Andy Green on Reed: "He can gobble up ground on the bases and is a guy that can flat‑out move around the outfield," and added Green's view that "The challenge is in front of him, and he's worked really hard on two‑strike adjustments: If he just puts the ball in play, Buddy's going to be a really successful player." Green also noted roster pressure after additions, saying "We brought three guys in, after camp started, that are going to be integral parts of what we do," referring to Adam Warren, Aaron Loup and Manny Machado.

Padresmission supplied projection context for the club's pitching picture, listing a projected eight‑man bullpen and a five‑man rotation headlined by Nick Pivetta, Michael King, Joe Musgrove, Walker Buehler and German Marquez, and warned that veteran depth shifts have pushed some internal candidates down the pecking order. As Padresmission put it, "It will be up to pitching coach and associate manager Ruben Niebla to get the veterans experiencing success once again. The loser in these additions is Vasquez, who was sitting as the No. 4 choice entering camp. He doesn't do anything very well and would be a solid part of the rotation if not for the presence of Buehler or Marquez. Any setbacks for any of the five starters mentioned above would open the door for Vasquez, who doesn't have any minor‑league options remaining. It is a good problem for the Friars to have after beginning the month pretty thin."

The five reassignments mark the first substantive trimming of San Diego's spring roster; the club will continue making cuts and monitoring pitchers such as Cruz and Yeager as it finalizes its Opening Day depth chart.