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You may have heard that the Padres and the Royals have worked out a deal. With Trevor Cahill, Ryan Buchter, and Brandon Maurer now off the roster, the Padres have made a roster move to backfill the vacancies:
The Padres have called up Dusty Coleman and Jose Ruiz to fill two of the vacated roster spots.
— AJ Cassavell (@AJCassavell) July 24, 2017
Dusty Coleman is a journeyman minor league shortstop who hasn’t been all that good this year. Jose Ruiz was a surprise addition to the 40-man roster last December, hardly a year after being converted from catcher to relief pitcher.
Jose Ruiz, 22, converted from C to relief pitcher last year. Had 5.19 ERA at Lake Elsinore this season. Coleman hitting only .209 with 14 HR
— Bill Center (@PadresCentral) July 24, 2017
Dusty Coleman is reported to be tonight’s starting shortstop, and Ruiz will be in a bullpen that is depleted after two extra-innings games over the weekend. Behind Coleman, struggling rookie Allen Cordoba is the only other capable shortstop in the roster, after playing two games with no real backup behind Cordoba. Coleman was a good story this spring, but he hasn’t been good at the plate or in the field once you look past the 14 homers. Ruiz has a 4.13 ERA over 48 innings pitched the last two seasons, with Advanced Single-A Lake Elsinore the highest level he’s seen.
Travis Wood should be going straight to the Padres’ MLB roster, but he will probably not be in town in time for the game, so the team may be a player short tonight. It’ll be interesting to see how Andy Green and the rest of the staff handles this odd roster.