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The Padres have signed catcher Blake Hunt to a minor league deal, as famous within the transactions tracker on Hunt’s MLB.com profile web page. Hunt’s deal was first reported by MadFriars earlier this month.
Hunt, 27, was a second-round choose by the Padres again in 2017. He was a chunk of the Blake Snell commerce through the 2020-21 offseason and spent a number of years climbing up the Rays’ minor league system. Hunt hit fairly nicely for the Rays’ Double- and Triple-A associates in 2023, slashing a mixed .256/.331/.484 with 12 homers in 67 video games, however in the end was not added to the membership’s 40-man roster through the 2023-24 offseason with minor league free company looming. That led the Rays to deal Hunt to the Mariners, who did add him to their 40-man roster and have been prepared to surrender minor league catcher Tatem Levins so as to take action.
After making the bounce to Seattle, Hunt hit extraordinarily nicely within the first month of the season at Triple-A with a .293/.372/.533 slash line in 24 video games. That was a robust sufficient efficiency that the Orioles determined to take an opportunity on him and bought him from Seattle within the deal that despatched Michael Baumann to the Mariners in Might 2024. He was known as as much as the majors in July of 2024 however didn’t make his huge league debut earlier than being designated for project by Baltimore. He remained with the Orioles by means of the tip of the 12 months within the minor leagues however hit simply .179/.219/.278 throughout 42 video games with the staff’s Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk.
Throughout the 2024-25 offseason, the Mariners re-acquired Hunt and stashed him on the minor league stage as depth behind their huge league duo of Cal Raleigh and Mitch Garver. Raleigh, after all, went on to have an MVP-caliber season in 2025 as he broke the only season report for dwelling runs by a catcher. That left little room for Hunt to make it to the majors this previous 12 months, however his minor league slash line did handle to get well after a tricky 12 months in Baltimore. Throughout 62 video games this 12 months, Hunt slashed .272/.368/.452. That slash line is inflated because of the offensive atmosphere within the Pacific Coast League, the place Seattle’s Tacoma affiliate performs, however Hunt’s efficiency was nonetheless good for an above-average 108 wRC+.
After the 2025 marketing campaign, Hunt turned a minor league free agent and hit the market as an intriguing, bat-first depth possibility for a catching-needy membership. He’s now discovered a house again along with his first skilled group and figures to be the highest depth possibility with Triple-A El Paso headed into 2026. The Padres have a reasonably weak catching tandem as issues stand, as Freddy Fermin profiles greatest as a part-time participant whereas Luis Campusano figures to function the membership’s backup for the time being after getting simply 27 plate appearances on the huge league stage final 12 months. That leaves a reasonably open path for Hunt to pressure his manner onto the MLB roster and maybe make his huge league debut after years of sitting on the cusp of doing so. If the Padres don’t make additional additions behind the plate, it’s straightforward to think about Hunt difficult Campusano for the job of backing up Fermin this spring with longtime prime prospect Ethan Salas nonetheless more likely to be years away from his personal huge league debut.
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