After a second half that gave the Padres plenty to feel good about, Jake Cronenworth stands out for a different reason: he’s the expensive piece that no longer fits neatly into the picture.
His 2026 season wasn’t a total loss, but it also wasn’t close to what San Diego expected when it committed seven years and $80 million to him. Cronenworth hit .225/.308/.321 with an 83 wRC+, and a jaw fracture early in the year - along with serious concussion symptoms that kept him out for nearly two months - clearly dragged down his performance. Once he came back in early July, he settled in at .250/.320/.364 with a 96 wRC+ the rest of the way.
Even with that context, the bigger issue is what Cronenworth has become overall. He hasn’t really moved beyond the player he was in 2020-21, when he earned the contract in the first place.
When healthy, he profiles as a slightly above-average hitter who can handle strong defense at multiple infield spots. That’s useful.
It just doesn’t age all that well as he heads toward his mid-30s - he’ll turn 33 in January.
That’s why the Padres have to at least ask the question: is this the moment to move on?
It’s not a new conversation. Trade rumors swirled around Cronenworth last offseason as San Diego dealt with a tight budget, and that same pressure could show up again this year with new owners in place and a lockout looming.
The catch is that the club may have already missed its best opportunity to get value back. Cronenworth followed his regular-season downturn with a rough playoff run, posting a .575 OPS and committing several mistakes that stood out for all the wrong reasons. With four years and just under $50 million left on his deal, it’s difficult to see contenders rushing to pay for a reclamation project.
So if the Padres do decide to shop him, the return may not be pretty. They’d likely need to attach a prospect just to get a deal done. They could also eat salary or take a bad contract back, but either route undercuts the whole point of moving him now, when his value is at its lowest.
There’s also the roster issue. San Diego doesn’t have a clear answer waiting at second base unless the bet is that Sung-Mun Song will suddenly solve things offensively after a complicated rookie season.
For now, the cleaner move may be the least dramatic one: keep Cronenworth and hope a healthy season gets him back closer to his 2025 level, when he was worth 2.9 fWAR and remained an important part of the lineup.
In Other News...
Padres Suddenly Have A Jake Cronenworth Question They Can't Ignore
Jim Bowdens latest free-agent projection puts the Padres in an interesting spot, with Brandon Lowe landing on a three-year, $45 million deal and San Diego listed among the best fits. It is the kind of rumor that immediately pulls the spotlight toward the infield, because Lowe is not just another name on the market. He is the sort of bat that can change how a roster is arranged and how a front office thinks about the pieces already in place.
For the Padres, the bigger question is what that would mean for Jake Cronenworth, whose role would suddenly be harder to define if Lowe enters the mix. San Diego would have to weigh the financial hit, the ripple effect on the lineup, and whether adding Lowe creates a cleaner infield alignment or forces a tougher decision elsewhere on the roster. It is the kind of move that could make sense on paper while still setting up a very real roster squeeze. [Read more 🡒]
Padres Suddenly Have A Rotation Problem They Can't Ignore
Michael Kings decision to decline his player option leaves the Padres with an immediate question they cant duck this winter. The right-hander turned down the remaining two years and $58 million on his deal, choosing free agency instead and taking the $5 million buyout, a move that strips San Diego of one of its most important starting pitchers heading into the offseason.
King had been a key part of the rotation, and his exit creates a real hole the Padres will have to address. For a team that already needed stability on the mound, losing a pitcher of that caliber adds urgency to everything that comes next, from internal planning to whatever they do in the market. [Read more 🡒]
Padres Suddenly Face A Tough Rotation Call With Michael King
Michael Kings decision to decline his player option immediately puts another layer of pressure on a Padres offseason that already figures to be shaped by pitching needs. San Diego is expected to try to bring him back, and for good reason, since he became an important part of the rotation and gave the club a reliable arm to build around.
A.J. Preller and the front office now have to weigh how far they can go to keep King while still leaving room to fill out the roster elsewhere. The Padres want to stay competitive, but they also need a fallback plan if the market pushes King beyond what they can comfortably spend. [Read more 🡒]