Padres Fans Will Love Ethan Salas' Mindset at 20 Years Old

The San Diego Padres are in an incredibly favorable position heading into the postseason.

Not only are they looking like the hottest team in baseball and have won 11 of their last 12, but when rosters expanded on Sept. 1, they called up top prospect Ethan Salas to make his MLB debut and unleash his bat.

In the minor league system this season, Salas was hitting .286/.361/.417 before his promotion to Triple-A where he continued to thrive. In just 24 games, the 20-year-old hit .326 with a .949 OPS and provided more than enough reason as to why he deserved a spot in the show.

His first MLB hit was a triple (becoming the first and youngest to do so since Manny Machado in 2012) and his next two hits were home runs that both occurred this past Wednesday. It also made him the youngest catcher in MLB history to have a multi-home run game.

Salas is clearly a special talent, but with seemingly all the pressure and expectations in the world, he has continued to keep his head screwed on straight and be present in what has been a whirlwind September for him thus far.

The young catcher said to the San Diego Union-Tribune's Kevin Acee that he is treating the game of baseball exactly as it is: a game.

“I mean, it’s just going out there and trying to have fun,” Salas said. “When you’re thinking about winning and winning the game, it’s selfless. You’re not thinking about what you did that day or what personal goals you have. It’s more like it doesn’t matter how I do today as long as we get the win. And obviously, you’re trying to do good and put your two cents in to help the team win. But it’s a lot more selfless, and you kind of lean on your guys a little more, and you just enjoy the game a lot more.”

Though they were each exciting, Salas still has just three hits at the MLB level, totaling a .120 batting average. Defensively, Salas' reputation precedes him and is something that he has previously stated stays consistent.

“My defense … it never goes away for me,” Salas said. “Whether I’m hitting or not, it’s our job as catchers to be dialed in back there and 100% locked in. So I think that’s something that always, always goes with me everywhere. The hitting will come along."

Regardless, as big of a difference there is between Double-A and Triple-A, the difference between Triple-A and MLB is that much more colossal. The young catcher's mindset reflects that of a tenured MLB veteran and includes sticking to a routine and continuing the grind, whether the results show in that moment or not.

“You see it from the outside looking in, and it can look a little different,” Salas said. “But once you get here, it’s kind of the same routine. Not the exact same routine as in the minors, but it’s the same baseball. You do the same stuff, though there are a little more things to do every day. You just prepare more. I think the preparation is just a little more important. And that’s it.”

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