Why This Padres Top Prospect Isn’t Close

The San Diego Padres believe they have their catcher of the future in the organization in 19-year-old Ethan Salas.

When he ultimately takes that role is anyone's best guess at this point in time.

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Salas, an international signing by the Padres in 2023, was enjoying a meteoric rise through the minor leagues when he was promoted to Double-A as a 17-year-old. It appeared the teenager was primed to make his MLB debut sooner rather than later, but he struggled in 2024 at High-A, slashing .206/.288/.311 with four home runs, 53 runs batted in, 98 strikeouts and an OPS of .599.

His progress was completely halted in 2025, as he opened the year in Double-A before suffering a stress reaction in his back. Salas played in just 10 games last year — hitting .188 with an OPS of .544 — and now enters the 2026 season with some uncertainty.

Salas, who was ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 8 prospect in all of baseball in 2024, is now outside the Top 100 heading into this season. He's also been replaced by left-handed pitcher Kruz Schoolcraft as the Padres' No. 1 prospect.

However, with all that being said, Salas turns 20 in June, a good reminder that he has a long way to go before needing to be a finished product.

Thus far in spring training, Salas has had just eight at-bats, going 1-for-8 with one RBI and an OPS of .489. It's clear the Padres have no plans to rush him anymore, as he'll likely open the season with Double-A and potentially spend the entire year there depending on his progression.

At the 2025 trade deadline, the Padres traded two young, controllable starting pitchers for catcher Freddy Fermin from the Kansas City Royals. Fermin is under team control until 2030, giving the Padres a solid starter at the position for as long as they need until Salas gets up to speed.

While Salas has been praised for his defensive work, his bat has lagged behind early in his professional career. However, with the time off last year, he was able to add 20 pounds of weight and make some adjustments in his swing.

“I think that’s why I didn’t see last year as the biggest negative in the world,” Salas said to the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I just took a lot of time to reflect, kind of make a plan starting forward and how I want to start going about things and I want to start playing and taking care of my business.

“I mean, I’m still young. I’m still (bleeping) grinding, still love this game and I know I’m going to do good things in this game.”

A healthy 2025 season would go a long way in his development. It's clear the Padres have no plans to rush him to the majors, instead letting him gradually improve before even bringing him up to Triple-A. MLB Pipeline projects a 2027 MLB debut for Salas, but 2028 wouldn't be all that surprising at this point in time.

And in regards to his dramatic fall in the MLB Top 100 rankings, Salas isn't too worried.

“They love you when you’re hot,” he said with a laugh, “and they hate you when you’re not.”

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