Take Oscar Gonzalez out of the Padres’ potential solutions in left field.
The 27-year-old outfielder has been placed on unconditional release waivers to allow him to pursue an opportunity in Japan, the Union-Tribune confirmed.
The Athletic first reported the transaction, which comes more than a week after the Padres traded away Connor Joe.
Padres left fielders rank last in the majors in weighted runs created-plus (39) and OPS (.483) and are tied for last in homers (2).
The 35-year-old Jason Heyward leads that group with 19 starts, but he is hitting just .177/.227/.278 after ing the team on a $1 million deal similar to the one that Jurickson Profar signed a head of last year’s All-Star campaign.
Gonzalez started 12 games in left field and hit .220/.246/.237 over 21 games before he was returned to Triple-A El Paso, where he was hitting .333/.368/.704 with five homers in 12 games in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
Gonzalez signed a minor league deal in the offseason and received his first call up since 2023 when Jackson Merrill hit the injured list with a hamstring strain, the start of several injuries that forced the Padres to dip into the Triple-A well.
Like Gonzalez, neither Joe and Tirso Ornelas were largely unproductive before returning to El Paso, albeit over much smaller samples. Joe was 0-for-9 with a walk and six strikeouts before his demotion and trade to the Reds and Ornelas was 1-for-14 with two walks and two strikeouts.
The 24-year-old Ornelas is hitting .313/.405/.393 with one homer in 28 games so far for El Paso.
Designated hitter Gavin Sheets received his second start of the season in left field on Sunday and just the 10th of his career. The right-handed-hitting Brandon Lockridge, who began the season in a platoon with Heyward, also played twice last week over Heyward against right-handed pitchers.
