The Padres have brought third baseman Ty France up to the active roster, the club has now announced after Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported the move (via Twitter). It seems he’ll take the place of Jose Pirela, who is going on the injured list with an oblique strain.
France already owned a 40-man roster spot, but this’ll be his first taste of regular-season MLB action. His most direct path to playing time was cut short when the club inked Manny Machado over the winter. But France has instead blazed his own trail with an inspired effort to open the year at Triple-A.
A solid effort at the plate in 2018 earned France his roster placement over the offseason, when he’d otherwise have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft. But he has taken things to a whole new level in the new season, compiling 92 plate appearances over which he carries a remarkable .423/.500/.885 slash with nine home runs.
France, who entered the professional ranks as a 34th-round draft pick, has only played on the corners during his minor-league career. That makes it tough to see how he’ll fit into the plans in San Diego, though perhaps the club will simply throw him into the mix at second base or the corner outfield and hope for the best. Otherwise, he’ll presumably be limited to spelling Machado and Eric Hosmer while functioning as a late-inning pinch hitter.
It may not be a full showcase for France, given the awkward fit, but it’ll still be interesting to see where things lead. He’s not considered one of the better prospects in a talent-rich organization, but is nevertheless an increasingly interesting player to watch. France could theoretically force his way into the picture or boost his trade stock, creating some interesting possibilities.
Late inning bat or let’s see how his hands are at 2B.
Let’s go!!!! I don’t know what I more happy about, France coming up or Pirela going down again finally after looking like his normal self (Michael Martinez 2.0) for all the Indians fans out there that need a reputable comparison for Pirela. Does all of things, and does them all very badly.
this indians fan definitely understands the martinez reference. sadly.
Please stop mentioning MM.
Francona might be listening.
Whoop! Sorry, he might be putting pen to paper on another minor league deal because of me. Lol
He’s played the last few games at 2B I believe, SD has a big hole there, I’m sure he’ll get plenty of time at 2B.
not sure big hole is correct. urias is the future of fryer 2B. I’m not selling just because of a cold start
I’m not saying he’s the future, but Urias is back in the minors and Kinsler is struggling, they need some production out of that position, that’s all. He’s a corner infielder, but they need some offense, especially if they want to contend.
I believe the hamstring injury really slowed Urias down and his timing seems off. I think regular reps in Triple A will get him back on track and we should see him within the next month or so. (Unless France performs anything close to his triple A numbers)
Urias will probably stay down until the end of May so that they get another year of control. He clearly isn’t forcing their hand to play, but should be a very solid future option. France as a pinch hitter could be a weapon. Hosmer’s contract is the onl7 thing preventing him from getting a serious look at a platoon at first base, at least until France proved he can’t do it.
Preller and Co don’t care about gaining extra years of control. Urias’ performance alone will dictate when he comes back.
If France performs close to his AAA numbers he will be the 2nd coming of Ted Williams and will win the Rookie of the Year and the MVP.
Urias is anything but a sure thing at this point. The AAA to MLB jump isn’t black and white, his path seems to be very unclear currently.
Potts is being groomed at 2B now as well, a big bodied power bat to add to Tatis Jr, Machado.
Also, Estuery Ruiz, Owen Miller, Xavier Edwards and Gabriel Arias are all guys who are going to be salivating over that 2B weakness at the big league level knowing that might be their quickest/best opportunity to get promoted. Left side is locked up for at least another 5 years.
Correct. Competition is a good thing. Nobody saying the Padres are relying on Urias. He will have a good shot at the position though. He is 21 and has excelled at every level with a super high hit tool and OBP skills. The jump to the big leagues from AAA will be a chore for France and all of the guys you mention as well. I hope that out of that group, including Urias, that the position can become one of strength sooner than later.
Potts is mainly playing 3B and is hitting .164 with 31 SO in 73 AB after today’s game. He still has not adjusted to AA ball. He is a long way away from the majors.
I heard he has gotten some time at 2B recently in the minors, so odds are he will play there. Even if his defense isn’t as good as Kinsler, it’s almost impossible for his bat to be any worse at the major league level lol.
On a side note, I really like the direction the Padres have gone. If a player deserves a promotion from the minors they don’t shy away from it. Everyone thought Urias had 2B locked, but he hasn’t earned it, so other guys are getting looks.
I agree and I disagree.
I agree with promoting/demoting based off on field performance at any age/any level of the organization. The aggressiveness of developing guys and putting them in the pressure cooker early has been a nice revelation to see from the Preller regime.
Tatis Jr’s, promotion obviously sent shock waves through baseball by the swerving the service-time clock and putting their best SS on the highest level of competition platform immediately. Thinking today not tomorrow. I like it. 6 years is a long time, who knows what will happen then, shoot who knows what will happen tomorrow, we as fans want instant gratification. All I know is that I don’t care if Tatis is a free agent in 25’ or 26’, I will enjoy every moment up until then and we will worry about that when it gets there.
I don’t like/disagree with the way Urias has been handled. Idk how long you’ve followed the Padres but it reminds me so far of how Matt Antonelli was treated. Signing Kinsler was pointless, all it did was put pressure on the org. to give him at-bats in order to see through his slump due to the $ tied to him.
He is this years Chase Headley, they won’t cut ties until he is roadkill but .147 out of the gate and getting over-powered by all RHP has been Kinsler in 19’. Padres owe him 8 million dollars so he will continue to get the at-bats while Luis rots in AAA. He should be getting every day at-bats in the show, not every prospect comes out the gates like Acuna/Tatis/Alonso. Some guys need more time to settle in and unfortunately Urias has yet to see that.
Kinsler was signed to play 2B/3B. and Urias was going to be the SS. Then the Pads signed Machado, which convinced them to bring up Tatis (wouldn’t have happened without the Machado signing) and that changed everything. The signing had a purpose when they did, but only ended up being pointless later on.
Gotta remember timelines. They’re important.
Kinsler was not signed to play 3rd base. He is limited to 2nd base. He can play it well but he can’t play anywhere else.
Remember, Pirela was hitting lights out in AAA too. Guard your optimism
No one likes Pirela except Preller I guess. He only had 5 AB’s, but reminded everyone by striking out in 3 of those and hitting into a double play in another lol. France doesn’t need a high bar since Kinsler and previously Urias set it so low this year at 2B.
Oh we don’t need to remember, we know Pirela can hit AAA pitching. He could probably hit AAAA pitching if such a league existed, but another thing we know after 4 years of watching Andy Green put him in the lineup is that he can’t hit Major League pitching.
He came up after TEARING the cover off the ball in El Paso and was his normal self, Strike Out’s flailing for pitches way out of the zone, grounding into double plays killing rally’s, and being an absolute defensive liability wherever he plays.
He is just taking up a 40 man spot on a system where the talent is to rich to support that.
So is Urias. .364 with 1.008 OPS
Not bad for a 34th round pick!
Local boy as well, what the article fails to mention is that Ty France played 3B for Tony Gwynn Sr. before he passed away and was coaching at San Diego State in 2013.
34th rounder who a lot of people are rooting for. True underdog with hometown roots.
Twitter link goes to Jon Heyman and the Gio signing…not Acee
I mean, he can only play the corners, so it’s hard to see where he’ll fit in with Hosmer raking the way he has.
People need to put France’s numbers in perspective. The Chihuahua’s are hitting .313 as a team. Including pitchers. Playing at 3700-5000 feet in El Paso and Albuquerque is like playing on the surface of the moon. Even playing at 2000 ft in Las Vegas makes it a launching pad. PCL numbers are not real world numbers and now AAA has a juiced ball.
msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/mlbs-juiced-baseball-is-j…
It’s ok PF. France has earned everything he’s got and if Green will actually give him something resembling regular PA’s we will shortly find out what he’s really made of.
You forgot to add that the pitching in the PCL is crappy.