The Padres continue to shop in buy-low buckets.
The team has agreed to a minor league deal with former Guardians right-hander Triston McKenzie, the Union-Tribune confirmed on Thursday. The deal includes an invitation to big-league spring training, where the 28-year-old McKenzie will reunite with Padres pitching coach Ruben Niebla.
McKenzie was the Guardians’ first-round pick in 2015 and developed into a top-100-class prospect while Niebla worked in Cleveland’s player development and on the big-league staff for a time after McKenzie’s debut in 2020.
The 6-foot-5, 165-pound McKenzie had a 3.68 ERA through his first three seasons in the majors (344â…” innings). But he missed most of 2023 with shoulder and elbow trouble, made 16 starts in 2024, posting a 5.11 ERA, and spent most of 2025 on the development list after he was designated for assignment in April.
McKenzie elected free agency in late September. He also allowed seven runs in 11â…” innings this winter in the Dominican Republic.
McKenzie’s addition comes after the team signed minor league relievers Ty Adcock and Daison Acosta to big-league deals, beginning to fill the 40-man roster spots previously held by the likes of free agents Dylan Cease and Michael King.
Cease has since signed with the Toronto Blue Jays, while King remains on the open market as the Padres continue to shop for rotation help.
In that regard, consider McKenzie a low-risk lottery ticket who the team hopes clicks with a reunion with Niebla.
The Padres’ offseason minor league additions also include catcher Blake Hunt, a 2017 second-rounder that the team traded away before the 2021 season as part of the haul used to net left-hander Blake Snell.
Drafted 30 spots after Luis Campusano, Hunt, 27, is a .245/.324/.398 hitter in his career in the minors. He has yet to make his MLB debut.