Padres set 30-man roster for Opening Day

The Padres joined the rest of the MLB on Thursday morning in releasing their official 30-man roster for Opening Day. In case you haven’t heard yet, MLB rosters will start with 30 players for the first two weeks of the season before shrinking to 28 for the next two. After that, teams will settle in at 26 players for the rest of the year.

One of the things that should stand out the most with the initial list is the Padres decision to retain 16 pitchers from the get-go. Despite losing Andres Munoz and Trey Wingeter to Tommy John surgery, plus Jose Castillo being out for a month with a lat strain, the Friars’ bullpen is still considered one of the best in baseball.

Quick hits:

• The Padres are going to give two catchers the opportunity to run away with the job by keeping both Austin Hedges and Francisco Mejia to begin the season. Hedges seemingly has the lead as of now. Luis Torrens will be a member of the taxi squad.
• Top prospects Mackenzie Gore and Luis Patino were not included in the team’s initial 30.
• The team’s top utility player will be Jake Cronenworth who can play every infield position and will likely be the main backup to Fernando Tatis Jr. at shortstop.
• Jurickson Profar and Greg Garcia are duking it out for the 2B spot with Profar in the lead for now.
• We only know the starting pitchers through the first three games. After Chris Paddack on Opening Day, it will be Dinelson Lamet followed by Garrett Richards.
• Edward Olivares’ impressive performance thus far essentially forced the trade of Franchy Cordero to Kansas City. He can play all three outfield positions and provides excellent roster flexibility.