Padres Lose Breakout Star to Oblique Injury, Call Up Luis Rengifo

The San Diego Padres have placed outfielder Samad Taylor on the 10-day injured list with a right oblique strain and selected veteran infielder Luis Rengifo from Triple-A El Paso, the team announced ahead of Wednesday's game.

We have selected INF/OF Luis Rengifo (No. 21) from Triple-A El Paso and placed OF Samad Taylor on the 10-day IL (right oblique strain).
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) July 8, 2026

Padres Place Samad Taylor on Injured List

Taylor is in the midst of a breakout season for a team in need of some offense this season, hitting .330 in 26 games along with a home run and 11 RBIs. His OPS+ of 127 puts him more than 25% better than league average in that regard.

Taylor told reporters Wednesday he didn't think the injury was too bad and that he was likely "day-to-day." However, he'll now miss at least 10 days with the injury.

“There’s really nothing I can do to go back and change it,” Taylor said to reporters. “I’ve done all my prep, done everything I need to do to take care of my body and there’s things that happen that are out of your control. This is one of them. Just get back to my work.”

Samad Taylor said he tweaked a little something with his oblique. Doesn’t think it’s too bad. Likely day-to-day. #Padres
— Annie Heilbrunn (@annieheilbrunn) July 8, 2026

The 27-year-old was drafted back in 2016 by Cleveland and didn't debut until 2023 as a member of the Kansas City Royals. He had just 38 total games of MLB experience before he inked a minor league contract with San Diego this past offseason.

Taylor's bat and his above average speed have made him a major bright spot in a season without many. His absence will surely be felt in the lineup, but the hope is that Rengifo can be productive replacement.

Padres Select Contract of Luis Rengifo

Rengifo started his 2026 campaign as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers but batted just .205 through 57 appearances. He was designated for assignment and later released towards the end of June, but wound up signing a minor league deal with San Diego.

In just six games at Triple-A El Paso, the 29-year-old collected a pair of home runs and hit .320 with an OPS of .930. Rengifo also presents the opportunity to be more flexible on defense as he can play virtually all over the field.

After making his debut with the Los Angeles Angels back in 2019, he remained in Anaheim until the end of the 2025 campaign. He batted .250 during his tenure on the Halos before electing free agency at the end of last season.

Though things didn't work out exactly as planned after he inked a one-year, $3.5 million deal with Milwaukee this offseason, he showed elite plate disciple in his sample size with the club. His strikeout percentage of 11.5% placed him in the 96th percentile in baseball.

For a Padres team with the lowest batting average in baseball (.224) and a flurry of injuries all over the roster, perhaps someone like Rengifo can start to drive things in the right direction through the second half of the season.

While the Padres lost one spark plug in Taylor, they'll hope Rengifo can fill a similar role.

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