Bradgley Rodriguez has spent this season forcing his way into the Padres’ late-game conversation, and the right-hander just added a little more history to the run.
Through 57 appearances, including four starts as an opener, Rodriguez owns a 2.07 ERA and has picked up two saves. He was already trending hard in the right direction before San Diego’s weekend series against the Tampa Bay Rays, and by Friday his career ERA had fallen to 1.86 - the lowest mark by a Padres pitcher through his first 62 career games.
That kind of production has made Rodriguez a trusted arm for manager Craig Stammen, who has leaned on him in some of the biggest spots of the season. Stammen has been willing to push him beyond standard bullpen usage, even giving him chances to finish games.
“We’ve been testing him," Stammen said recently. “He’s been pitching a lot, and he’s been pitching against the other team’s best hitters in a lot of high-leverage spots, and he’s turned into someone we can really trust.”
Rodriguez has carved out that role inside a deep Padres bullpen that also includes Mason Miller and Adrian Morejón. Even with those names around him, he has found a way to separate himself, and he could be positioned as the team’s full-time setup man next season if Morejón leaves in free agency.
There’s also the possibility that Miller is moved after the Padres held trade deadline discussions, and that would create another opening at the back end of the bullpen. Rodriguez has already shown enough in a limited closer role to make that a real consideration.
“I think it’s something that you do as a professional player,” Rodriguez said. “You try to get better as a year goes by, and even during my career, I need to get better each and every day.”
This is Rodriguez’s first full big league season in 2026, but he’s hardly looked like a rookie trying to find his footing. He flashed plenty of promise last year as well, posting a 1.17 ERA in seven appearances.
The Padres have been getting a lot out of their bullpen, and Rodriguez has become one of the reasons why. If he keeps this up, San Diego has another weapon for the stretch run and the playoffs - and maybe a pitcher who is only just beginning to show what he can be.
“It’s impressive, his composure on the mound, especially how he battles out there,” center fielder Jackson Merrill said of Rodriguez to The Athletic. “He’s got ‘it.’ He’s got the ‘it’ factor.”
In Other News...
Padres Just Lost Their Place In MLB Ownership History
For a stretch, the Padres could point to their place in the state rivalry and the broader business of baseball as one of the more notable franchises in Southern California. Now the record book has shifted again, with the Angels set to be sold to Stan Kroenkes Kroenke Sports & Entertainment for $4 billion, a valuation that resets the high-water mark for an MLB franchise sale. The deal, expected to close in 2027, adds another major piece to Kroenkes growing sports portfolio.
For San Diego, the headline is less about the Angels than the changing economics around the sport. The Padres have spent recent years navigating an increasingly competitive landscape in which ownership clout matters almost as much as payroll, and a new benchmark this large only underlines how much the industry has changed. Kroenke already controls several pro teams across different leagues, and this latest move only deepens the sense that baseballs power structure is becoming even more concentrated. [Read more 🡒]
Padres Suddenly Have 2 Surprise Award Cases In The Stretch Run
The late-season stretch has given the Padres something they did not necessarily have circled back in spring: a pair of award cases that are starting to gain real traction. MLB insider Jim Bowden of The Athletic projects Mason Miller to take home the National League Relief Pitcher of the Year Award, pointing to a dominant run in the back end of San Diegos bullpen. Miller has paired a 1.26 ERA across 55 appearances with 32 saves, production that has made him one of the defining arms in the leagues final months.
There is also a quieter but potentially bigger storyline around Craig Stammen, who is in his first year managing the Padres and has helped steer the club into playoff position. Bowdens prediction has Stammen as the National League Manager of the Year, a nod to how the team has stayed in the race under his watch. Both projections still depend on San Diego finishing strong, which leaves the Padres with more than one reason to pay close attention to the final weeks. [Read more 🡒]
Fernando Tatis Jr. Is Suddenly Carrying The Padres When It Matters Most
Fernando Tatis Jr. has turned August into a reminder of why the Padres still view him as the face of their lineup. After an uneven first four months, he caught fire with nine home runs and a .901 OPS over 27 games, giving San Diego a much-needed lift as the calendar has tightened and the race has gotten more serious.
The timing could hardly be better for a club trying to hang onto a small lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks for the National Leagues third Wild Card spot. Tatis had only eight homers through the end of July, which made the turnaround even more important for a Padres offense that needed someone to take charge when the pressure started to build. [Read more 🡒]