Former Yankees Starting Pitcher Turning Heads in Padres Camp

San Diego Padres right-handed pitcher Randy Vásquez is poised to play a big role for the organization in 2026.

The Padres acquired Vásquez as part of the return package in the Juan Soto trade in December 2023. The New York Yankees sent the right-hander along with Michael King, Jhony Brito, Drew Thorpe and Kyle Higashioka to San Diego.

Flash forward to 2026 and Vásquez is turning heads in Padres camp.

His fastball has been electric, touching up to 98 mph with movement. The right-hander has made hitters work this spring as the injured Yu Darvish has served as Vásquez's mentor.

His spring performance has been promising, so much so that manager Craig Stammen believes Vásquez could be a version of Darvish in the rotation this season.

“Yu Darvish is trying to teach Randy how to be the Dominican Yu Darvish,” Stammen said.

The right-hander is perhaps one of the most crucial starters for the Padres, given the injury concerns of others in the rotation.

The three top guys in the starting rotation are Michael King, Nick Pivetta and Joe Musgrove. However, Musgrove is set to begin the season on the injured list as he continues his recovery from Tommy John surgery.

“He’s most likely going to start on the IL this year," Stammen said of Musgrove on Monday. "This was part of the plan. We knew he was going to have to take some time off, we knew we were going to have to get him ready for the entire season, and not just Opening Day.”

Rightly so, the Padres want longevity from Musgrove. While it looks like the right-hander may miss the start of 2026, the team is prioritizing his health late in the season and into October.

King is also coming off an injury-riddled season where he dealt with a thoracic nerve issue and knee inflammation.

That leaves Pivetta as the healthiest starter of the trio, but even he was dealing with arm fatigue this spring.

Enter Vásquez.

Randy Vásquez poised to play pivotal role for Padres in 2026

The right-hander was a workhorse for the Padres last season and they'll need that from him again in 2026. Only this time, Vásquez may have a little extra flare as he gleans from Darvish, a five-time All-Star.

Vásquez had a 3.84 ERA with 78 strikeouts across 133.2 innings of work last season. He was optioned to Triple-A El Paso in August, but returned to the big leagues in September to post a 2.53 ERA.

His return featured a dominant nine-strikeout performance against the Colorado Rockies.

Entering spring, Stammen had already revealed Vásquez had the inside track to securing one of the final two rotation spots.

As Opening Day quickly approaches, the Padres rotation still has several question marks as the team navigates injury and veteran pitchers competing to be the No. 5 starter.

One thing that's for certain? Vásquez is ready to make headlines in 2026.

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