The Padres re-sign Logan Gillaspie to a contract in the minors

The Padres signed the right-hander Logan Gillaspie to a minor league contract earlier this month, per Gillaspie’s MLB.com profile page. The 27-year-old Gillaspie will return for his second season with the organization after the Padres passed him up in November to create space on the 40-man roster.

Gillaspie had a 4.10 ERA over 26 1/3 innings and 28 plate appearances with the Orioles in 2022-23 before the Red Sox claimed him off waivers in September 2023. This stint in Boston didn’t result in any big league playing time and it didn’t work out. He didn’t last long overall, as San Diego picked him up on another waiver claim just two months later. The Padres drafted Gillaspie back and forth from Triple-A a maximum of five times, and the shuffling of assignments may have affected his performance: Gillaspie had a 7.15 ERA in 11 1/3 innings over nine appearances with San Diego.

On the plus side, Gillaspie had a 3.77 ERA, a 21.5% strikeout rate and a 9.7% walk rate in 45 1/3 innings with Triple-A El Paso. These decent numbers look even better in the context of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, and represent a step up from Gillaspie’s Triple-A performances in 2022-23. That said, Gillaspie’s strikeout numbers have declined over the past two seasons while he has allowed a few more walks.

Gillaspie is out of minor league options, so if the Padres were to select his contract on the active roster next season, the team would have to try to sneak him through waivers to send him back to Triple-A. That could leave Gillaspie in another form of roster limbo if his 2025 campaign ends up being a flurry of DFAs and outright assignments, but for now he’ll continue to operate as minor league bullpen depth in the Padres’ system.