Padres: 3 replacement options for an underperforming Tommy Pham

Friday’s series opener against the Dodgers certainly lived up to the hype. A ton of lead changes, a pitcher’s duel to start and temperatures rising between the San Diego Padres and their biggest rival.

Unfortunately, San Diego came out on the wrong end of things, dropping the contest by an 11-6 final in 12 after Los Angeles hung a five spot to seal things late. For the Friars, the big storyline was the return of Fernando Tatis Jr., who belted a big home run in his first game back from a shoulder injury – and a sterling start from lefty Ryan Weathers.

The loss dropped the Padres to 9-6 on the year, 3 1/2 games back of the Dodgers in the NL West. This team hasn’t found its groove yet – that much is clear. Without Tatis Jr., the offense has been erratic and we hope his return will help the group get things moving in the right direction.

But it can’t be all about Tatis Jr. There’s one guy who’s struggled immensely this season – and needs to get it going if he wants to get regular action in left field: veteran outfielder Tommy Pham.

Just 2 for his last 20 (.100), Pham is dead weight at the dish. On the year, he’s batting just .140 (6-for-43) – and given the importance of this weekend’s series against the Dodgers, Jayce Tingler needs to do what he did on Friday and keep Pham out of the starting lineup.

Padres have one of the game’s most versatile players in Jurickson Profar

Bringing Jurickson Profar back late this offseason was one of the most prudent moves made by San Diego’s front office. He’s coming off a season in which he hit a career-best .278/.343/.428 in the shortened campaign – but perhaps more importantly, he can spell pretty much anyone at any time as needed.

Already this season, he’s seen time at both corner outfield spots, first and second base. This is a definite area of strength for the Padres – in Profar, Ha-Seong Kim, Jorge Mateo and Jake Cronenworth, they have four guys capable of playing both the infield and outfield. Such depth is critical – as we’ve learned over the last two weeks with Tatis Jr. sidelined.

In Friday’s series opener, Tingler went with Profar in left over Pham – and the 28-year-old utility man rewarded his skipper’s faith with a clutch, game-tying double late. On the year, Profar is batting .292/.390/.375 – good for a 120 OPS+.

A switch-hitter capable of playing all over the diamond who’s swinging a hot bat? This guy has to be the top choice to start in left right now over Pham – if for nothing else, the obvious offensive upgrade this would be.

Padres: Jorge Mateo is capable of handling things in the outfield

In his first taste of big league action last year, Jorge Mateo really struggled to find a rhythm offensively. He mustered just a .185 on-base percentage in a limited sample size of 28 plate appearances, but after tearing it up this spring in Cactus League action, gets another chance.

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This spring, Mateo slashed .316/.414/.456 – putting up some of the best numbers of anyone on the ball club. Now, with Pham mired in a cold streak to open the season, the 25-year-old Dominican could get a chance to impact the Padres in a big way.

Like Profar, this guy a jack-of-all-trades. This season, he’s hitting .267/.421/.400 in 10 games – good for a 137 OPS+.

What you’ll notice about all three of these guys is you can mix and match where they line up defensively depending on the matchups, but Mateo has done more than enough this year to warrant time in left.

In the minors, Mateo never looked like an elite type player with the stick. But so far in 2021, it looks like he’s figured something out. I’m all for playing the hot hand and right now, he’s one of them.