Padres fans are looking for reasons to be excited about the 2025 season. One could be the emergence of reliever Sean Reynolds.

The Friar Faithful certainly have had a lot to gripe about over the years. However, one thing the Padres seem adept at doing is developing or finding solid relievers seemingly out of nowhere.

Trevor Hoffman. Heath Bell. Robert Suarez. Nick Martinez. Steven Wilson. Jeremiah Estrada. All of these relievers seemed to come out of nowhere. Now, it’s not fair to expect any failed position player prospect to turn into someone who can notch 601 saves on their way to the Hall of Fame. Frankly, the 2025 Padres don’t necessarily need something that dramatic out of Sean Reynolds.

San Diego acquired Reynolds in the Garrett Cooper deal that sent Ryan Weathers to Miami in the summer of 2023. He spent most of the 2024 campaign toiling in Triple-A El Paso. The Pacific Coast League is where pitcher’s ERAs go to die. One example is that of Adrian Morejon, who had a 6.08 ERA in El Paso in 2023 and proceeded to post a 2.83 ERA in 60 games last season at the big league level.

Reynolds owned a a 6.17 ERA in 54 innings for El Paso in 2024. However, during his brief time with the big league club, he showed that the lackluster numbers in El Paso could be yet another PCL mirage.

He appeared in nine games, pitching 11 total innings. He allowed just one earned run (0.82 ERA) in that span, with a whopping 21 strikeouts. If you decreased the minimum innings pitched to 10, Sean Reynolds, all of Major League Baseball, with a 17.18 strikeouts-per-nine-innings rate.

He certainly seems to have the stuff, or even Stuff+, to make it in the big leagues.

Yes, it's just 11 Inning Pitched…

However, Padres RP Sean Reynolds a 142 Stuff+ Slider on @enosarris updated Stuff+ Model.

That's T-6th among All MLB pitchers w/ Min 10 IP. https://t.co/dYwBdAGuKq pic.twitter.com/tthdX3Dd9J

— Clark Fahrenthold (@CFahrenthold11) February 5, 2025

Not to mention his “stuff,” the Redondo Beach native stands at a towering six-foot-eight, 250 pounds. The 26-year-old is an imposing figure. Even with a small sample size, his repertoire clearly can be effective in the big leagues. His fastball can approach 100 mph. He complements that elite fastball with a wipeout slider. Batters slugged .150 against his slider.

One thing Reynolds needs to work on is his control. While he is striking out nearly two batters per inning, his walk rate leaves something to be desired. With more time with pitching coach Ruben Niebla, that is a flaw that can be ironed out over time.

All this while Reynolds only got 11 innings of big-league action. San Diego lost Tanner Scott to free agency, and then he signed with the Dodgers. There will be some voids to fill in the bullpen. There will likely be eight spots in the bullpen. Certainly, Robert Suarez, Jason Adam, Jeremiah Estrada, Adrian Morejon, Bryan Hoeing, and Wandy Peralta are near-locks. Reynolds will compete with Yuki Matsui, Jhony Brito, Alek Jacob, Tom Cosgrove, Stephen Kolek, Ron Marinaccio, and J.B. Wendelken for two spots.

Spring Training will be a perfect opportunity for Reynolds to show his stuff. The competition for the last few spots in the bullpen is wide open. Given his elite strikeout rate, immense size, and wipeout secondary pitch, Reynolds should get strong consideration. Not only that but if Reynolds makes the team out of camp, he has the stuff to become an elite reliever at the big-league level. With some improvement to his control, he even has a skillset that plays well as a closer someday.

Nick Lee

Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.