Padres Minicamp Opens for select minor leaguers

The San Diego Padres’ minor league program officially got underway in Peoria Wednesday as 54 prospects reported for the club’s annual minor league minicamp. The group, evenly split with both 27 pitchers and position players, will get a two-week head start on minor league spring training, working under the supervision of 45 instructors and coaches.

Many players participating this year also got early work last spring and finished their years working in the Instructional League, acclimating them to the workload they might expect in the big leagues

Pitchers MacKenzie Gore, Adrian Morejon and Luis Patiño headline the group as each looks to build up their stamina after limited in-season pitch totals last year.

While the group largely includes players who will open the year in Single-A, most of the likely members of the Amarillo rotation who aren’t in big league camp, including Michel Baez and Reggie Lawson,will join them Pitchers range in age from 19-year-old Efrain Contreras to Emmanuel Ramirez, who will turn 25 mid-year. Only Ignacio Feliz, acquired for Walker Lockett in the offseason, has not previously appeared in the Padres organization.

The position player group skews much younger, reflecting the strength of the under-20 set in the system. In addition to last summer’s rookie-league breakouts Xavier Edwards and Tucupita Marcano, most of last year’s TinCaps roster is in the mix as well. Several college hitters from last June’s draft, including outfielders Grant Little, Jawuan Harris and Dwanya Williams-Sutton and slugging catcher Nick Gatewood will all get to show the staff what they can do on fresh legs.

The full list is below.