Padres Sign Former Mariners, Marlins Pitcher Ahead of Opening Day

The Padres made an addition late in spring training.

Jun 17, 2022; Denver, Colorado, USA; A detail view of a San Diego Padres hat on a glove in the dugout in the ninth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The San Diego Padres have signed right-handed pitcher Julio Dilone to a minor league contract, per the team's transaction log on MLB.com.

Dilone, 25, is returning to Major League Baseball after spending the 2025 season with the Lexington Legends of the Atlantic League.

Dilone began his career with the Seattle Mariners when he signed as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2020. He reached High-A with the Mariners before being selected in the minor league portion of the 2023 Rule 5 draft by the Miami Marlins.

Dilone made five appearances with Miami's Single-A affiliate in 2024, allowing nine earned runs over 3.2 innings for a 22.09 ERA. He was released in May 2024 and hasn't been back with an MLB team since.

In 33 relief appearances for Lexington last year, Dilone had a 4.63 ERA with 36 strikeouts across 35 innings. Now, the Padres are giving him an opportunity on a minor league deal.

Dilone was assigned to the Padres' Dominican Summer League squad for the time being. He'll look to work his way up the organization over the coming years, hoping to make his MLB debut at some point in the next handful of seasons.

Dilone has a career 6.94 ERA in the minor leagues, with 88 strikeouts to 52 walks over 58.1 innings pitched. He pitched well in his limited action at High-A, making four appearances and sporting a 3.18 ERA across 5.2 innings.

The Padres clearly saw something they liked in the 25-year-old. Thus, they'll give him an opportunity to work in their system and potentially develop into a major league pitcher.

Padres minor league deals in March

Dilone is the second player the Padres signed to a minor league deal in March. The first was outfielder Alex Verdugo, who was assigned to minor league camp as he looks to work his way back to the MLB level.

Verdugo, a former second-round pick and top prospect of the Los Angeles Dodgers, has impressed the Padres thus far in camp not only with his play, but with his engagement in helping the younger players.

“Just in a much better headspace, much better physically,” Verdugo said to the San Diego Union-Tribune earlier this spring. “I just feel rejuvenated. The batteries are back to being charged.”

He's looking forward to hopefully getting a chance with the Padres at the big league level in the coming months.

“Do I think my story is done? Absolutely not,” Verdugo said. “I just wanted to get back and just start playing again. So that’s why I took the deal here. And I’m not afraid of the work. I’m not afraid of the long days and the hard hours that we’re putting in. It’s been a blessing, man. I love this group. Everybody has been great with me.”

Verdugo has appeared in 856 games across nine seasons at the MLB level with the Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves. He has a career slash line of .270/.326/.406 with 70 home runs, 328 RBIs and an OPS of .732.

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