In his last contracted year, the San Diego Padres expect Luis Arraez to continue to be an offensive force at the top of the order. 

In his 33 games with the Miami Marlins last season, Luis Arraez hit under .300, which would have been his first time not reaching that mark since 2021.

After being traded to the San Diego Padres on Star Wars Day 2024 (May the 4th be with you), to say he thrived is an understatement.

Arraez would go on to hit .314 for the Padres, amassing 159 hits in 117 games en route to his third consecutive batting title. While he had almost the same number of walks (24) as strikeouts (29), it seems surprising that an elite hitter of his caliber would do so on his third team in as many seasons.

The Padres signed their batting champ to a one-year, $14 million deal that allows the team to have a true leadoff hitter through the 2025 season. The coming season is Arraez’s last under contract before he hits the open market in the winter.

During the Padres 2024 season, the team employed nine different leadoff hitters.

Eguy Rosario, anyone?

While Jurickson Profar did have a higher batting average (as well as OBP and OPS) than Luis Arraez leading off, it was clear the lineup benefited most with the now three-time batting champ at the top.

With Profar signing a three-year, $42 million deal with the Atlanta Braves this offseason, clearly, he is out of the equation. When Luis Arraez takes a day off, who will fill that void at the top of the order? Should he miss time, what would the lineup look like? Let’s hope we don’t have to worry about the latter. But who else is capable of leading off?

Looking at the current roster depth without Profar is not an issue. While his presence will be missed, you have to think that Padres manager Mike Shildt will be ready with multiple versions of the lineup we haven’t seen before.

Someone who led off games in 2024 is Xander Bogaerts.

While Bogaerts might not have produced the numbers leading off that Arraez or Profar did, his experience and willingness are a definite plus. He actually recorded 118 at-bats in the leadoff spot for the Padres. He also played 10 more games at the top of the lineup than Profar did in 2024. When batting leadoff, Bogaerts hit .212 with a .279 OBP compared to Profar’s stellar .380 BA and .451 OBP.

Not ideal.

It will be interesting to see who can fill that void when Luis Arraez needs rest. Are they on the current roster? In the minor leagues? Possibly on another team?

One thing is certain: the best pure hitter the San Diego Padres have had since Tony Gwynn is ready to contribute on a team that has their sites on the postseason. Luis Arraez is an important part of this team.

If his time in the big leagues has shown us anything, it is that Luis Arraez is anything but average. His ability to hit the hardball is definitely way above average.

Jason C. Mobbs