Padres Sign 6-foot-7 Pitcher With 103-MPH Fastball

A general view of a San Diego Padres hat and glove in the dugout prior to the game between the Miami Marlins and the San Diego Padres at loanDepot park in 2021. | Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

D.J. Snelten's major league career consists of four appearances out of the San Francisco Giants' bullpen in 2018. His last season in affiliated baseball was 2023, when the left-hander had a 7.50 ERA for the New York Yankees' Triple-A affiliate.

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Snelten, now 33, is an unlikely candidate to play a role with the Padres — or any major league team — in 2026. But he's reportedly taken the first necessary step toward a comeback. Ari Alexander of WHDH reports that the Padres signed Snelten to a minor league contract.

DJ Snelten has been signed.#Padres are in agreement on a minor league deal with 33-year-old LHP DJ Snelten, a league source tells me.

Snelten, who last pitched in the Majors in 2018, recently touched 102.7 mph in a bullpen and has consistently sat 99 mph this offseason.… https://t.co/6gixsTrpOh

— Ari Alexander (@AriA1exander) December 23, 2025

Nick Sanzeri, an independent pitching coach, posted a training video on Twitter/X on Saturday, showing Snelten throwing a mix of fastballs and curveballs. His fastball topped out at 102.5.

Whether or not Snelten was on the Padres' radar before last week is unclear. In 2018, his fastball averaged 89 mph in his cup of coffee with the Giants (per Statcast).

Although his 6-foot-7 frame allows for above-average extension — and potentially creates an uncomfortable angle for batters, especially lefties — he made no batters uncomfortable in 2025.

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Snelten signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox in January. He began the season on the injured list and was never activated before being released in May.

Snelten would resurface in a series of Tread Athletics videos over the summer, again lighting up the radar gun with triple-digit heat.

James Fegan of Sox Machine caught up with Snelten earlier this year and reported on the changes to his mechanics that have allowed him to unlock velocity. The stuff should play at the major league level; the only question is whether his command and health will cooperate.

In 2024, Snelten made 25 appearances in the Mexican League, and had mixed results. In 18.2 innings, he allowed 17 hits and struck out 27 batters. He also walked 15 and finished with a 4.34 ERA.

Snelten's brief stint in the Yankees organization came after a three-year layoff, during which he rehabbed from Tommy John surgery and explored retirement.

Now he's getting another chance to return to the majors in the same division his career began.

The Padres actually drafted Snelten in the 30th round of the 2010 MLB draft out of high school, but he elected not to sign. Snelten went to the University of Minnesota instead and was selected by the Giants in the ninth round of the 2013 MLB Draft.

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