Thursday, November 06

The Padres enter the 2025 offseason with most of their key players set to return, but several critical roster questions.

"The core foundation in terms of the position-player group and the bullpen is there,” said Padres general manager A.J. Preller. “When you start a team with [Jackson] Merrill, [Fernando] Tatis Jr., [Manny] Machado, [Xander] Bogaerts, [Jake] Cronenworth and now [Freddy] Fermin, that’s a good place to start.”

Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming offseason -- including key dates, decisions and pending free agents.

Which players are free agents?

At the conclusion of the World Series, a handful of Padres will become free agents, including: Dylan Cease, Luis Arraez, Ryan O’Hearn, Jose Iglesias and Nestor Cortes.

Which players have options and when do those need to be decided?

The Padres have several players who could join that group of free agents, with options that must be decided within five days after the World Series. The most notable are Michael King (one-year, $15 million mutual option) and Robert Suarez (two-year, $16 million player option), both of whom seem likely to opt out and become free agents.

Meanwhile, Ramón Laureano has a $6.5 million team option for the 2026 season. Given his production in ‘25, it seems extremely likely that the Padres would pick up his option and that Laureano will be the team’s Opening Day left fielder.

Other Padres with options include: Elias Díaz ($7 million mutual option), Wandy Peralta ($4.45 million player option), Kyle Hart ($5 million team option) and Tyler Wade ($1 million team option).

What is the deadline for qualifying offers and who might receive one?

The qualifying offer is set at $22.05 million this season. Given what starting pitchers traditionally make on the free-agent market, Cease and King both seem likely to receive a qualifying offer. After that, it’s unclear whether the Padres would consider offering either Suarez, Arraez or both. But it seems unlikely.

The Padres have until five days after the World Series to make their decisions on the qualifying offer. From there, any players who receive the offer will have one week to accept or decline. If any Padre declines that offer, the team would receive a Draft pick after the fourth round.

What is the non-tender deadline, and who is a candidate?

The deadline to tender contracts to players for the 2025 season is Nov. 21. If a player is not tendered a contract, he would immediately become a free agent.

The majority of the Padres’ arbitration-eligible players are expected back in 2026. Luis Campusano, who made $1 million in ‘25, is an interesting case, but Preller, speaking during his end-of-season press conference, noted that Campusano would be part of the team’s plans this winter.

Among pre-arb players who might be non-tendered, Jhony Brito -- coming off UCL internal brace surgery -- seems the likeliest candidate.

Who must be added to the roster to avoid being eligible for the Rule 5 Draft?

Among MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 Padres prospects, here’s who must be added to the 40-man roster this winter to be protected: RHP Miguel Mendez (No. 5), LHP Jagger Haynes (No. 10), RHP Garrett Hawkins (No. 19), RHP Francis Pena (No. 20), IF Romeo Sanabria (No. 21), RHP Isaiah Lowe (No. 27), RHP Victor Lizarraga (No. 28). Outfielder Yonathan Perlaza, the Padres’ Minor League player of the year, would also need to be protected.

Among that group, Mendez, a fast-riser during the 2025 season, seems like the only lock to be protected. That leaves interesting decisions on intriguing pitching prospects like Haynes, Hawkins and Pena.

What is the focus in free agency and on the trade market this winter?

With King and Cease set to hit free agency -- and with uncertainty surrounding the future of Yu Darvish -- the Padres’ most obvious need this winter is starting pitching. They will almost certainly pursue it from all directions -- both in trades and in free agency.

That said, it seems unlikely that the Padres would reel in a big-name starter this winter. The likelier outcome is that they’ll look for the next Nick Pivetta. Pivetta signed an affordable deal at the start of Spring Training, and the Padres developed him into one of the best pitchers in the sport.

In the bullpen, the Padres should enter the 2026 season with one of the best collections of relievers in the sport, even without Suarez. But it’s possible they’d look to add another left-hander to that mix.

On offense, meanwhile, the Padres are mostly set across the diamond, presuming Laureano is back. But they could use a big bat at either first base or DH and perhaps a bit of bench help.

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