The three most exciting words in all of sports: Baseball is Back!

The San Diego Padres returned to action in their Cactus League opener against the Seattle Mariners. Scheduled starter Logan Gillaspie was scratched on Thursday night, and with under 24 hours’ notice, Jagger Haynes toed the rubber for the Padres in what was ultimately a 7-4 loss. 

Lineup Notes

WE PLAY BASEBALL TODAY pic.twitter.com/QqG9QiQcDb

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) February 20, 2026

The Padres went with most of their starting array of position players, as the lineup saw eight of nine projected starters in there against Mariners right-hander Dane Dunning. Notably, Nick Castellanos started at first base, and Luis Campusano started behind the plate. Xander Bogaerts opened the 2026 Padres baseball season with an infield single out of the leadoff spot. Jackson Merrill, hitting out of the two-spot, finished 0-for-1 with a nine-pitch walk drawn. Jake Cronenworth and Ty France each finished with one hit in two at-bats, with France serving as the DH. Defensively, Castellanos looked like a natural at first base, making a diving stop among several routine plays at first. Is it too soon to call him a plus defender? Yes, but Castellanos has embraced the position and only looks to improve. 

Nick Castellanos flashing the leather at 1B #SpringTraining pic.twitter.com/R9mX3UtyV6

— MLB (@MLB) February 20, 2026

The Starting Battery

Left-hander Jagger Haynes started for the Padres and showed some growth on the mound. Haynes touched as high as 94.3 mph on the sinker, which, for this point in spring, is a strong result. He showed a revamped slider shape, which was much tighter than his sweeping slider last season. While this slider got less horizontal break than he did last year, it was much sharper and effective at coaxing swings against left-handed batters. His sinker-sweeper combination looks to be a recipe for success in 2026. Haynes’ changeup did play well off the fastball, but he did allow a two-run homer off a hanging changeup. 

? Oppo-tacos for lunch ? pic.twitter.com/zQwLZZ1avP

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) February 20, 2026

#Padres‘ Jagger Haynes looked solid in his Spring Training start

Flashed a much tighter bullet-type of slider, and his sinker showed impressive tailing action@EVT_News pic.twitter.com/EC6ZzIQR3x

— Diego Garcia (@StatNerd_Base) February 20, 2026

Luis Campusano started behind the plate, and for as much of a reputation as he may have had defensively, he showed signs of improvement. Campusano has reportedly shown a higher defensive floor early in spring workouts, and it showed in his game-calling in-game. Campusano had two successful ABS challenges behind the dish, one of which earned his pitching staff a strikeout. As for his use of it at the plate… we don’t need to get into that. 

The Theatre Connection

The Padres were held scoreless through the sixth inning, at which point all the starters were removed from the game. First baseman Romeo Sanabria stepped to the plate against Mariners fireballer Troy Taylor and turned on a center-cut sinker to center field. Sanabria hit the ball at 106.4 mph, sending it 416 feet out to center field for the first Padres run of the season. Sanabria notably struggled against high velocity last season, so seeing him homer on a fastball was a positive. San Diego added on in the seventh against Seattle’s Alex Hoppe, as Jose Miranda launched a two-run home run to deep left field. Miranda’s homer left the bat at 100.8 mph, traveling 395 feet. Miranda would finish the game 2-for-2 with a homer and a double, each hit over 100 mph. 

O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? pic.twitter.com/6bt11vQ9Es

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) February 20, 2026

¡Miren a Miranda! pic.twitter.com/u3y7rh34JK

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) February 20, 2026

The Arm Barn

The Padres’ bullpen saw a pair of regulars make their Spring Training debuts, as Mason Miller and Wandy Peralta each tossed an inning of relief. Miller’s outing was quite notable, as the soon-to-be closer for Team USA hit 100 mph or higher on nine pitches. Both Miller and Peralta are set to be WBC-bound soon, so their appearances early in camp bode well for their readiness.

San Diego used six relievers to cover the final six innings. Justin Yeager allowed a run in one inning of work, striking out one. Jackson Wolf was charged with two runs in 1.2 innings of relief, in part due to some rough batted-ball luck and a misplayed double-play ball. Manuel Castro’s command was not present in his outing, as he was also charged with two runs while recording just two outs. Garrett Hawkins made his MLB camp debut with back-to-back strikeouts to stymie a bases-loaded threat. 

#Padres RHP Garrett Hawkins’ stuff today.

Chat, I think a 75-grade fastball might be pretty good… pic.twitter.com/wAnrJvuvwW

— Diego Garcia (@StatNerd_Base) February 20, 2026

Road Trip Coming Up Next:

The Padres are set to make the drive to Surprise, Arizona, for Saturday’s game against the Kansas City Royals.

Matt Waldron was announced as the starting pitcher, and he will be set to face former Padre Ryan Bergert. First pitch is set for 12:05 pm Pacific Time, and while there is no video feed, the game can be followed on the radio at 97.3 The Fan.

Diego Garcia

A born and raised San Diegan, Diego Garcia is a lifetime Padres fan and self-proclaimed baseball nerd. Diego wrote about baseball on his own site between 2021-22 before joining the East Village Times team in 2024. He also posts baseball content on his YouTube channel “Stat Nerd Baseball”, creating content around trades, hypotheticals, player analyses, the San Diego Padres, and MLB as a whole.

A 2024 graduate of San Diego State, Diego aims to grow as a writer and content creator in the baseball community.