Padres Exec Provides Major Update on Ethan Salas' Development

The San Diego Padres hosted top prospect Ethan Salas this spring in camp to evaluate the young catcher's progress.

How close is Salas to making his MLB debut? Based on his usage this spring, he still has a lot of time left before playing at Petco Park on a regular basis.

Salas participated in Cactus League play as a non-roster invite for the Padres, where he went 2-for-9 in his limited at-bats.

San Diego assistant director of player development Mike Daly provided a major update on Salas' development this spring, specifically noting how crucial it was for the 19-year-old to consistently work in camp.

“His hands work exceptionally well with blocks, throwing, accuracy,” Daly said to MLB.com. “He continues to build up on the swings and work on the bat -- tighter moves, more consistency on the barrel accuracy aspect, staying in the middle of the field. The most important thing is he's been able to get his work in every single day.”

Salas missed a majority of the 2025 season with a back injury, which certainly halted any progress he was making in the minors.

After president of baseball operations A.J. Preller traded top prospect Leo De Vries to the Athletics in the Mason Miller trade last summer, the organization's face of the future became Salas. The Padres have high hopes for the young catcher, but his time away hampered his prospect value.

Salas is no longer included in the Top 100 prospect list by MLB Pipeline. That can quickly change in 2026 if he continues to perform at a high level.

At just 17 years old, Salas soared to Double-A in 2023. He could do something similar this season.

Aside from the back injury, Salas' development at the plate also slowed down as he hit .206 with an OPS of .599 in High-A during the 2024 season.

Salas competed in only 10 games in 2025, all at Double-A. He hit .188 with an OPS of .544 in that small stretch of games.

Despite the small sample size, it was clear Salas needs more time developing his bat before breaking out in the big leagues — and that's okay.

Padres Top Prospects Headline Spring Breakout Game

Salas, along with left-handed pitcher Kruz Schoolcraft and Kash Mayfield, headlined the Padres prospects in the Spring Breakout game against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.

Schoolcraft has become the most highly-touted prospect in the Padres organization because of Salas' time away last season. He is the only Padres prospect currently in MLB's Top 100, per MLB Pipeline.