Minor League Baseball

San Diego Padres Invite Top Prospects Leodalis De Vries, Ethan Salas to Spring Training

Shortstop Leodalis De Vries and catcher Ethan Salas, the top-two prospects in the San Diego Padres' farm system, will officially join the MLB club for spring training camp.
Sam Connon|
San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres catcher Ethan Salas (88) looks on during the eighth inning Seattle Mariners at Petco Park.
San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres catcher Ethan Salas (88) looks on during the eighth inning Seattle Mariners at Petco Park. | Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images

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San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres officially extended 28 non-roster invitations to spring training on Friday, some of which went to the top young talent in their farm system.

Infielder Leodalis De Vries and catcher Ethan Salas were both included on the list of players heading to Peoria, Arizona. MLB Pipeline has De Vries ranked as the No. 18 prospect in all of baseball, while Salas has been slotted in at No. 33.

Salas and the Padres' other pitchers and catchers are set to report to camp on Feb. 12. De Vries will be there by the time full-squad workouts begin on Feb. 17.

Both Salas and De Vries are 18 years old.

Salas was previously a non-roster invitee in 2024. He appeared in eight Cactus League contests, going 2-for-9 with a double, a walk, a sacrifice fly and an RBI.

In 111 games with High-A Fort Wayne last season, Salas hit .206 with four home runs, 27 doubles, 53 RBI, 10 stolen bases and a .599 OPS. He then hit .228 with a .751 OPS in the Arizona Fall League.

De Vries also saw AFL action in 2024, batting .179 with a .583 OPS. It was a step down from his regular season production with Single-A Lake Elsinore, when he hit .238 with 11 home runs, 22 doubles, 38 RBI, 13 stolen bases and an .803 OPS in 75 games.

Neither Salas nor De Vries are expected to make the Opening Day roster in 2025, considering they both have MLB ETAs of 2027.

Salas is the only top-five catching prospect who isn't projected to reach the big leagues this season, so he could very well be the top prospect at his position this time next year. De Vries, meanwhile, is the highest-ranked shortstop prospect with a 2027 ETA.

Related MiLB Stories

  • SALAS, ARRÁEZ TEAM UP: Ethan Salas linked up with Luis Arráez in the batting cages, getting some pointers from a fellow Venezuelan with three batting titles to his name. CLICK HERE
  • RAYS PROSPECTS EARN NRI: Out of the 30 non-roster invites that Tampa Bay extended for big league Spring Training camp, four went to prospects ranked in the top 100. CLICK HERE
  • MARLINS LAND SALAS: Andrew Salas followed in the footsteps of his brothers by signing a big-money deal with Miami as an international amateur free agent. CLICK HERE

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer for “Minor League Baseball on SI’’ and other "On SI'' baseball sites. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for “UCLA on SI’’ and won awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for “New England Patriots on SI’’ and was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Follow Sam on Twitter @SamConnon.

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