SAN DIEGO – Since being dealt by the Baltimore Orioles at the trade deadline, first baseman Ryan O’Hearn has provided an extra sense of comfort to the San Diego Padres. 

O’Hearn has been used in a multitude of scenarios in his 14 appearances (10 starts) in the Brown and Gold, and has, generally, capitalized on the opportunities he’s received. Since arriving, he is slashing .231/.370/.460 with two home runs, a pair of doubles and eight RBI with six walks.

Entering Wednesday’s game, he has drove in a run in three consecutive games and seven in his last 11 contests, while also having two multi-hit games in his last three.

That said with the Padres acquiring O’Hearn along with his Orioles teammate Ramón Laureano to the fully loaded roster, there have been some tough decisions made to who starts and who sits. Having it being a blessing more than a curse, there have been a few times where O’Hearn comes in as a pinch-hitter, but he believes his past experience as a bench player has helped him transform into the current player. 

“Without a doubt it’s helped me,” O’Hearn said. “You know, being a pinch hitter, bench roll guy was my job for a couple of years. And you have to embrace it. And I think there’s a lot of things that come with it. You have to kind of understand where you’re going to fit into a game, who you might face. You know you’re going to get that adrenaline rush, maybe some anxiety and I think when you’re a young player, it can consume you. And I think the older you get you understand how to use that and kind of stay present, stay in the moment.”

  

Over the first month in his new threads, it has become a growing frustration with the fan base on why they haven’t seen more of the 32-year-old, considering the impact he has to the roster and how it could bolster the team down the stretch into the postseason. 

Specifically as a lefty going against other left-handed pitchers, O’Hearn has struggled throughout his career. This season, he has gone 17-for-61 (.279)  against lefties with a pair of homers and eight RBI.   

Padres manager Mike Shildt was recently asked why he’s been sitting O’Hearn against left-handed pitchers and he gave a sharp response during his back-and-forth.

“Where would you have started him?” Shildt said to the reporter. “It’s always going to be flexible. It’s going to be relative to the total picture of who we have on the club that day. Like every day, it’s always a question of who’s going to give us the best opportunity to go compete.” 

To a certain extent, it is unknown if O’Hearn will ever become a day-in, day-out name on the starting lineup, even coming off being named the starting designated-hitter for the American League during the recent All-Star game. However, he is not worried about that and he has accepted that there have been other players on the roster that have been battling all season for their respective spot on the Padres.

It is not a new thing for O’Hearn to not have his name on the starting lineup on a consistent basis. He only played in 342 games through his first five years on the Royals (44 games in 2018, 105 games in 2019, 42 games in 2020, 84 games in 2021 and 67 games in 2022) and was struggled with a batting average of .219 and a .293 on-base-percentage.

After being traded to the Orioles in 2023, his role as a big leaguer shifted the over next two and a half seasons in Baltimore, appearing in 348 games for the Orioles and hit 42 HR, 58 doubles, 162 RBI and scored 153 runs. He also significantly improved his average to a .277 and posted a .342 OBP, .454 SLG and .796 OPS. 

Letting the chips fall wherever they may, O’Hearn has fully embraced his role and just wants to contribute in any way he can.

“When I say whatever they need out of me, I truly mean that,” O’Hearn said. “I’ve been used in baseball games in many different aspects and I’m game for it. Whatever skipper needs from me, I’m be ready to go.”