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Padres News: Roster Moves Update

By Andrew Beccarelli

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The San Diego Padres have been keeping busy so far this week, with less than two weeks remaining this Spring.

Here’s an update on all the Padres’ roster moves so far this week, according to the Padres official website and blog, FRIARWIRE:

The Padres have reassigned catcher Austin Hedges and pitcher Scott Elbert to their minor league camp.

The Padres have also claimed pitcher Jandel Gustave off the outright waivers from the Kansas City Royals. The Padres will have to find a place for Gustave on the final 25-man roster or be forced to send him back to the Royals.

As a result of acquiring Gustave, the Padres have moved injured catcher, Tim Federowicz to the 60-day disabled list. Federowicz recently had arthoscopic knee surgery and is expected to be out until after the All-Star break.

Of all the moves this week, the reassignment of Austin Hedges is the most interesting to us here at Friars On Base. Austin Hedges is still considered the top catching prospect in all of baseball, but his bat is still not at the major league level.

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Hedges only had 14 plate appearances this spring, hitting a low .154 batting average. When asked about the demotion of Hedges, manager Bud Black had this to say:

"“He’s in a good spot and he made good strides,” said Padres manager Bud Black. “He feels as though he is in a good spot to become a Major League player.”“For me and for us [as an organization], the 150 pitches he receives every night is going to be more important than the four at-bats,” Black said.– padres.com"

You can watch the full Bud Black interview at Padres.com.

I know a lot of us are getting restless when it comes to Hedges. We have been hearing for a few years now about this great catching prospect in the Padres farm system, whose glove is considered by some to be major league ready. Watching our team struggle last season definitely made a lot of us wonder why Hedges wasn’t being given a shot in the pros, since the season was already seemingly lost? What we have to remember is that Hedges is only 22-years old. Unless you’re a Mike Trout or a Bryce Harper, major league success usually does not come to someone that young, and the Padres know it.

There’s a good chance that moving Hedges up too quickly could scar his bat forever, so the Padres are being very careful with him. With the acquisition of Derek Norris this off-season, the Padres don’t need to hurry Hedges. They can let him take his time and mature naturally.

Don’t worry about Hedges, he’ll get there.

Have faith and Go Pads!

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