Padres Prospects Participate in Mini-Camp

Spring Training for pitchers and catchers is less than a month away, and 16 Padres prospects got a bit of a head start Wednesdays as they arrived at a mini-camp at SDSU to get to know the Padres new manager and coaching staff. Andy Green was very excited about the event.

More from Padres News

Green noted that his goal was really to let the prospects know who their coaches would be during Spring Training to help them be comfortable right away and focus on playing baseball to make an impact for the Padres in 2016.

“[It’s] getting to know these guys, build trust and built relationships…We want them, when they roll into [Spring Training] to know who [bench coach] Mark McGwire is, know who I am, know who [hitting coach] Alan Zinter is, to know our trainers and how things work so they don’t come in the first day saying, ‘Where am I, what do I do?…we are trying to remove as many impediments as possible from their path to being great contributors this year.”

Sounds like an excellent plan. While the camp which just goes through Friday is not open to the public, it is conceivable that many of the players at this camp would be playing full time in San Diego sooner than later.

Among the attendees was newcomer and now top rated Padres prospect Manuel Margot, long-coming savior Hunter Renfroe, as well as players who made some successful cameos last season and hope to capitalize in 2016 like Colin Rea and Travis Jankowski.

Newcomer Christian Bethancourt and incumbent catching prospect Austin Hedges attended as well.

With the prospect influx A.J. Preller engineered this off-season, many of the players are playing live in front of the Padres for the first time, including Jabari Blash. On his new teammates Blash had this to say, “I’m familiar with a few of them, but before long, we’ll be like family.”

More from Friars on Base

For manager Andy Green, he knows that when Spring Training starts his real work will start right away blending his mix of veterans and youth in the Padres clubhouse. For these three days, he insists there is no hidden agenda. “We’re trying to get to know these guys, it’s not to get them to show up and blow it out or have a miraculous batting practice or wow us with their tools.”

Pitchers and catchers report February 18th with the first full squad workout being February 24th.

Home/Padres News