Padres Outfielder Leaves Team for Opportunity in Japan: Report

The San Diego Padres are down another outfielder.

Oscar Gonzalez, who's hit .220 in 61 major league games with San Diego this season, is on his way to Japan according to Dennis Lin of The Athletic on Twitter/X.

After trading Connor Joe last week, the Padres are parting with another left-field option. They placed Oscar Gonzalez on unconditional release waivers to allow him to pursue an opportunity with a Japanese team, sources said.
— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) May 19, 2025

Lin reports that Gonzalez is being placed on unconditional release waivers. If and when he's officially moved on, the 27-year-old will be the second outfielder this month to leave the organization.

The Padres traded Connor Joe to the Cincinnati Reds on May 9 for right-handed pitcher Andrew Moore and cash.

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Now, the Pads will move on from Gonzalez, who likewise did not offer enough offensively to continue in his role as a right-handed hitting option in Mike Shildt's outfield rotation. The Padres signed Gonzalez to a minor league contract last November.

After Gonzalez received an invitation to the Padres' major league spring training camp, he slashed .400/.431/.564 in 21 Cactus League games to seize a roster spot practically out of the gate.

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Gonzalez failed to maintain his scorching pace into the regular season. He was hitting .300 as recently as April 22, but he only had one extra-base hit in 69 plate appearances.

Gonzalez has never played in Asia in 11 seasons as a professional. Across three MLB seasons with the Cleveland Guardians (2022-23) and Padres (2025), Gonzalez has slashed .264/.294/.396 with 13 home runs and 59 RBIs.

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Gonzalez spent the 2024 season in the New York Yankees organization. He slashed .294/.333/.469 in Triple-A but did not appear in a game for the Yankees during their pennant-winning season.

Gonzalez also appeared in 12 games with the Padres' Triple-A affiliate this season. In 57 plate appearances with the El Paso Chihuahuas, Gonzalez slashed .333/.368/.704 with five home runs and 16 RBIs.

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If the Padres were willing to give Gonzalez more opportunity to parlay his Triple-A performance to the majors, perhaps the outfielder was unwilling to be as patient with an offer from Japan in hand.

Now, San Diego must look elsewhere to fill the still-gaping void in left field created when Jurickson Profar left via free agency.

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In terms of OPS (.504), Padres left fielders rank 27th in MLB. By on-base percentage (.236) they rank 29th. By extra-base hits (six) they're tied for 26th. With Gonzalez no longer in the fold, it becomes increasingly likely that San Diego will have to look outside the organization for help.

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