Preston

Tucker

Tucker passed through waivers unclaimed and will head back out onto the open market. The 33-year-old journeyman outfielder hasn’t appeared in the majors since the 2018 campaign. He was added to San Diego’s 40-man roster back in June, but never wound up getting back to the big leagues.

The Padres needed to free up room for all of their new acquisitions after Tuesday’s trade deadline and Tucker apparently wasn’t in the plans. The 33-year-old has impressed at Triple-A El Paso this season — hitting .293/.433/.565 with 11 homers and 40 RBI in 240 plate appearances. It seems like there should be teams willing to take a shot on him on waivers.

Tucker had an opt-out in his minor league contract looming, and the Padres didn’t want to risk losing him to free agency. He’ll presumably get a chance in San Diego once he’s fully healthy again.

Tucker, who spent some time in Korea, is making a case to return to the majors for the first time since 2018. He’s batting .368 with 10 homers and more walks (31) than strikeouts (27) in 172 plate appearances for El Paso. It probably should be noted that he is taking advantage of a very friendly offensive environment; he has 18 extra-base hits in 20 games at home and five extra-base hits in 20 games elsewhere.

The latest round of cuts leaves 56 players in camp this spring for San Diego. Schrock is the most prominent by a wide margin, while Merrill is regarded as one of the top prospects in baseball after being selected in the first round of the 2021 MLB Draft. Tucker is another interesting cut since he hasn’t appeared in the majors since the 2018 campaign.

Tucker hasn’t made it back to the majors since the 2018 season and spent last year in the Braves’ minor league system. The 32-year-old also spent three seasons overseas with the Kia Tigers of the Korea Baseball Organization. He’ll provide the Padres with some extra position player depth at Triple-A El Paso.

Tucker appeared in 80 games for the Braves back in 2018 and will reunite with the organization as minor-league outfield depth. The 31-year-old spent the last three seasons with the Kia Tigers in the Korean Baseball Organization.

Tucker lit it up this past summer in the Korea Baseball Organization, batting .306/.398/.557 with 32 home runs and 113 RBI in 142 games. The 30-year-old former Astros prospect became the first player in Kia Tigers history to record 30-plus homers, 100-plus RBI, and 100-plus runs scored in a single season.

The deal will become official on Monday, assuming Tucker passes a physical. He’s replacing fellow former big leaguer Jeremy Hazelbaker -- who was placed on waivers -- on the Tigers’ roster. Tucker, 28, is a career .222/.281/.403 hitter over parts of three seasons in the majors.

Tucker slugged a go-ahead, two-run double off Dodgers reliever Parker Curry in the eighth inning. The 28-year-old is in camp on a minor-league deal and will likely serve as organizational depth at Triple-A this season.