Padres make overdue promotion for red-hot outfielder after Triple-A surge forces their hand

The Padres have finally stopped pretending Jase Bowen was just a cute novelty story. Not only was that the right call, to some, it was the only call. They’re calling up Bowen, first reported by Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, giving the 25-year-old outfielder his first shot at the big leagues after a loud start with Triple-A El Paso.

The move will require San Diego to open space on both the active roster and 40-man roster, so this isn’t a casual transaction. This is the Padres deciding that Bowen has done enough to make the inconvenience worth it.

Bowen has been forcing this conversation since spring training. He wasn’t just occasionally running into a few balls. He was one of the most fascinating non-roster stories in camp, hitting his way into the picture while giving the Padres the exact kind of athletic depth they were eventually going to need.

Jase Bowen made the Padres’ outfield decision impossible to avoid

He didn’t make the Opening Day roster, so all he did was continue to punish baseballs until he made the front office pay enough attention.

Bowen entered the call-up conversation with a .292/.362/.600 slash line, 13 home runs and a 121 wRC+ in Triple-A. And for the Padres, this promotion feels especially important because it cuts through one of the more annoying habits teams fall into. Too often, a player rakes in the minors while the big league club keeps cycling through familiar names, comfortable veterans or bench pieces who are not actually helping enough to justify the delay. 

At some point, though, the production has to matter.

There are still strikeout concerns with Bowen. So there’s no need to think the Padres just called up a finished product. But there’s a difference between being cautious and being stubborn. They need more power, and Bowen gives them that. He also can cover the outfield really well, adding to the overall coverage, athleticism, speed, and little bit of unpredictability. 

The call-up should feel refreshing for Padres fans. It’s performance-based. It’s earned. And it’s also a small reminder that the front office doesn’t always have to go shopping for every answer. 

They are still going to need more than Bowen. One promotion won’t fix every offensive inconsistency. But they did make the right move.

They finally gave their outfielder a chance. He spent months making this promotion feel obvious. Now the Padres get to find out whether the obvious answer was also the correct one.

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