Eguy

Rosario

Rosario was the subject of trade rumors after being designated for assignment, but nothing came of it. He’ll be a depth piece in Triple-A, and the Padres will have to put him back on the 40-man roster in order to promote him.

Rosario was designated for assignment Thursday after not making the Opening Day roster. The 25-year-old offers some roster versatility and some offensive upside, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if he found a new club by the end of the weekend.

The move clears a pair of spots on San Diego’s season-opening roster for veterans Yuli Gurriel, Jose Iglesias and Martín Maldonado.

The New York Post’s Jon Heyman reports Gurriel will make $1.25 million if he’s in the majors. The 40-year-old veteran first baseman got into 18 contests last year for Kansas City and figures to have a decent shot at making San Diego’s season-opening lineup in a backup role behind Luis Arraez and Jake Cronenworth. He’ll compete in spring training with some combination of Jason Heyward, Connor Joe, Tirso Ornelas and Eguy Rosario for regular DH at-bats. There’s very little fantasy impact here, but his presence gives the Padres some insurance in case Ornelas isn’t ready for the big-league spotlight.

After using him exclusively in the infield for eight years, the Padres finally had Rosario play a little right field in Triple-A last year, starting him there nine times. His best position is third base, but there’s clearly no room for him there in San Diego. Finally out of options, he should make the team and start against lefties. Whether it will be in left field or maybe at DH could hinge on how his outplay compares to Connor Joe’s.

The Padres activated Luis Campusano from the 10-day IL on Friday, but they’re going to hang on to three catchers for the time being, which squeezed Rosario off of the big-league roster. He’ll surely get another opportunity with the Padres before the summer is through.

Rosario was sent down in early May in spite of an .836 OPS in 52 plate appearances, and he’d since come in at 1.022 in Triple-A. The problem is that he’s really just limited to second and third defensively, and the Padres don’t have much use him at those spots. He’ll probably see some time against lefties between DH and second base.

Rosario hasn’t seen much playing time, and the infielder will head to Triple-A to likely see more consistent at-bats. Donovan Solano is up to take Rosario’s place on the roster.

Rosario apparently doesn’t have a thing for history, as his solo homer ended a 32 2/3 inning scoreless streak for Ranger Suárez. Rosario has gone deep three times with six RBI in limited playing time, and he’s slugging a rather healthy .605. The 24-year-old is definitely a name to keep a close eye on over the coming weeks.

The 24-year-old infielder delivered a two-run double off of Victor Mederos in the sixth inning that extended the Padres’ lead to 4-0. That would wind up being the extent of the team’s offense in the ballgame and by the home half of the inning the lead had evaporated. Rosario finished the afternoon 1-for-3 and is now hitting .250 (7-for-28) with three RBI and a pair of stolen bases on the spring.