Report: Padres agree to deal with infielder Jose Iglesias
Oct 9, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Mets second baseman Jose Iglesias (11) celebrates after defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in game four of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
According to reports, the Padres have signed veteran infielder Jose Iglesias.
The Padres needed some veteran depth in the infield and, especially, coming off the bench. It appears that they have signed just that in shortstop Jose Iglesias. It is a minor-league deal.
Free-agent infielder Jose Iglesias and the San Diego Padres are in agreement on a contract, according to sources familiar with the deal.
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) March 5, 2025
Iglesias gets $3M if in majors plus $1M incentives on Padres deal
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 5, 2025
The 12-year veteran was a clubhouse glue guy for the New York Mets last year in their run to the NLCS. After basically six seasons of replacement-level play with various teams, Iglesias was an injection of life and chemistry to the 2024 Mets. On the field, he played 85 games, batting an astounding .337 with an .830 OPS. He earned 3.1 WAR in just over half of a season. He split most of his time between second base and third base in New York, with a few games at his native shortstop as well.
In the Mets’ postseason run to the NLCS, he collected 10 hits in 12 games. He also boosted the team with his hit song “OMG” that debuted at #1 on the Billboard Latin Digital Song Sales chart and was basically the Mets’ theme song down the stretch.
Now 35 years old, his days of being an everyday shortstop are over. Still, he is known for his solid defensive play throughout his career.
The Cuban infielder did sign a deal with the Padres in 2023 but never appeared in an MLB game before opting out of the minor league deal.
Despite not being known for his prowess at the plate, something clicked for Iglesias at 34 years old. He set full-season career highs in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging, OPS, and OPS+. He was one of the hardest batters to strike out last season. That philosophy is already well-ingrained to the Padres, who are one of the toughest strikeouts in all MLB.
It should be noted that his batting average of balls in play (BABIP) was at .382 last year when his career mark was .315. That suggests he got a large amount of good luck with batted balls in play.
Still, at the very least, Iglesias will provide solid depth in the infield along with being a positive in the clubhouse. He may play a similar role to Donovan Solano’s last year for the Padres.
This move does put into the question the status of Eguy Rosario or Tyler Wade on the MLB roster, if Iglesias makes the team. That is still to be determined. He still needs to make a good case during what’s left of Spring Training.
Hopefully, the Padres and Iglesias can both experience the magical postseason runs they enjoyed last year.
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.