Padres could circle back to a familiar catcher if the current plan stalls

The San Diego Padres don’t have a “panic button” offseason vibe right now — but they do have a couple of roster spots where you can see the contingency plan forming in real time. Catcher is definitely one of them.

On paper, they can talk themselves into what it already has. Freddy Fermin is under team control through 2029 and was described as a solid in-season addition after the Padres did their homework on whether he could handle learning a new staff on the fly. Luis Campusano is back on a one-year deal for 2026, and A.J. Preller has made it clear he’s still “in the mix” after a season that didn’t exactly go to script. 

But that last part is the key phrase: in the mix. And that’s why the reunion chatter makes so much sense.

Victor Caratini might be the Padres’ underrated answer if catcher questions linger

Victor Caratini is sitting out there as one of the cleaner “if this gets weird” solutions the Padres can find at catcher. He’s a switch-hitter who can balance a lineup in a way this roster usually needs, and he’s coming off a solid 2025 with Houston: .259/.324/.404 with 12 homers and 46 RBIs. Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report even tagged Caratini as one of the most underrated free agents still available this winter.

The fit is easy to sell in San Diego because it’s not theoretical. The Padres already know exactly what Caratini looks like in their clubhouse and behind their plate. He came over in the Yu Darvish trade, and he wasn’t just “another catcher” — he was famously Darvish’s personal catcher and handled all 32 of Darvish’s starts in 2021. Even if the staff looks different now, the larger point still matters: catching is a trust position, and Caratini has already earned that trust in this organization.

That “familiarity” angle is a bigger deal than fans sometimes realize. The Padres literally acknowledged last season how hard it can be to drop a new catcher into the mix because of all the pitching-staff nuance and communication that has to click fast. If you’re going to add a catcher, adding one who already speaks the Padres language is about as clean as it gets.

It’s not like the Padres would be shopping in peace and quiet. Houston hasn’t ruled out a reunion either, and they’ve been open about still evaluating their backup catcher options.  Caratini is also firmly on the “available catchers” radar league-wide right now. 

Still, if Campusano’s 2026 starts to drift into the same frustrating pattern — flashes, stalls, uncertainty — this is the kind of veteran move the Padres can make without turning it into a whole production. Not the splashiest signing of the winter. Just the kind that keeps a good team from getting stuck.