In a Zoom meeting this week with the media, A.J. Preller indicated that the Padres are exploring all options at shortstop for the coming season. 

The San Diego Padres are essentially made of a bunch of shortstops on defense.

Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Jake Cronenworth, Jackson Merrill, Jurickson Profar, Xander Bogaerts, and Ha-Seong Kim have all played the position. Luis Arraez even played eight games at the position early in his career.

That is eight of the nine men in the batting order. Only the Padres’ catchers had no experience at the position. For a Padres team who badly needed a shortstop early in A.J. Preller’s reign, this is crazy.

Heading into 2025, Ha-Seong Kim is a free agent. Before the 2024 season, the Padres handed the starting job to Kim as his defense is extraordinary. Xander Bogaerts was moved off the position in the second year of his massive deal. He played a decent second base but seemed to struggle moving back to short after Kim went down with a shoulder injury late in the year.

Moving Bogaerts back to shortstop made the most sense. It was the easiest move for the Padres.

But is Bogaerts the starter for the 2025 season?

With a full offseason to decide, the Padres may look outside the box to fill the position in 2025.

Jackson Merrill is one possibility, as the left-handed swinger enjoyed a productive rookie season in the majors. Merrill played shortstop his whole career and could make the switch easily, but the Padres have no option in center, and that is why he manned the position in 2024. The center field position is one of weakness around the league. Aaron Judge is playing center for the Yankees right now. That is all you need to know about the position.

“We’ve got a lot of athletes on the field and a lot of possibilities,” Preller said on Monday when asked about the Padres shortstop position. Preller did not rule out a move but only confirmed that he and his staff would evaluate the ideas in the next several weeks. Preller laughed when asked about Tatis and Merrill specifically. According to the G.M., both men have expressed interest in returning to the infield. But, Preller did mention each is comfortable and productive at their current position in the outfield.

No matter who the Padres roll out on opening day in 2025, they should be productive. Preller mentioned that Ha-Seong Kim is still a real possibility as the two sides work on a future contract. Kim is well-liked in the clubhouse, and the Padres will do everything in their power to secure his services. But money may be a factor.

The G.M. said that the team would find out which option was best for them. If the Padres were able to acquire a starting outfielder, then moving Tatis or Merrill to the infield makes sense. But nothing is certain at this point. The Padres and their G.M. work from several different angles. Which path they take is anybody’s guess. It’s too early to say.

“We will start the year with a shortstop. So we will figure it out,” Preller said jokingly about the topic.

This is a non-issue right now, and you get a feeling the Padres will name a shortstop when the roster fills out this winter.

James Clark

James was born and raised in America’s Finest City. He is a passionate baseball fan with even more passion towards his hometown Padres. Editor-In-Chief of EastVillageTimes.com. Always striving to bring you the highest quality in San Diego Sports News. Original content, with original ideas, that’s our motto. Enjoy.