Padres roster review: Ryan Weathers

RYAN WEATHERS

• Position(s): Left-handed pitcher
• 2022 opening day age: 22
• Bats / Throws: Right / Left
• Height / Weight: 6-foot-2 / 222 pounds
• How acquired: First round in 2018 (Loretto HS, Tenn.)
• Contract status: Earned $570,700 in 2021; will not be arbitration-eligible until 2024
• Key 2021 stats: 4-7, 5.32 ERA, 1 save, 72 strikeouts, 30 walks, 1.38 WHIP, .279 opponent average, 94 2/3 innings (30 games, 18 starts)
  

STAT TO NOTE

• 1.039 — Opponents’ OPS over Weathers’ 13 appearances (seven starts) in the second half, all games that the Padres went on to lose. Weathers posted a 9.25 ERA over his final 36 innings after beginning the season with a 2.91 ERA over his first 58 2/3 innings.
  

TRENDING

• Down — The seventh overall pick in 2018, Weathers made history on Oct. 6, 2020, when he made his MLB debut in the postseason at 20 years and 294 days old. Only the Royals’ Adalberto Mondesi, at 20 years and 95 days old, had been younger when the Padres asked Weathers to essentially jump from low Single-A Fort Wayne to the majors to face the heart of the Dodgers’ lineup in a postseason game. Weathers earned the opportunity with a standout showing at the alternate site and doubled down on his progress when he showed up the following spring training in significantly better shape. Weathers ultimately opened 2021 in the Padres’ bullpen, earning a three-inning save in his first appearance of the season and allowing just a run in his first six innings before injuries pushed Weathers into the rotation on April 16 against the Dodgers. He got through that start and the next, also against the Dodgers, without allowing a run over 9 1/3 innings, and ultimately became the first Padre to allow no more than three runs across his first six starts. He did, however, battle arm soreness in the early in the season, was optioned briefly to Triple-A El Paso in June and had a 2.91 ERA when he injured his right ankle while covering first base in his first start before the All-Star break. Weathers ultimately returned from the injured list 13 days later with four shutout innings against the Marlins, boosting the front office’s confidence in the 21-year-old rookie as General Manager A.J. Preller opted against trading for rotation help at the deadline. Hours later, Weathers allowed eight runs in three innings (and three of his 20 homers allowed) to start a disastrous four-start stretch in which he yielded 25 runs over 15 2/3 innings. Weathers was largely relegated to the bullpen after that as a promising rookie season ended with his ERA ballooning to 5.32.

2022 OUTLOOK

• A poor finish should not tarnish Weathers’ standing in the organization as an up-and-coming arm, albeit one perhaps pushed too hard and too quickly amid extenuating circumstances. He was, after all, set to begin 2020 in the high Single-A California League when the COVID-19 pandemic wiped away the minor league season. His stuff — a mid-90s four-seamer in particular — took a giant leap at the alternate site, but the fact remains that Weathers did not have an appearance above A-ball on his resume when he was asked to buoy a playoff-hopeful pitching staff. In a perfect world, Weathers is allowed to continue his seasoning in Triple-A El Paso’s rotation and is first in line when the big-league staff needs reinforcements.
  

Padres starting pitcher Ryan Weathers, center, reacts as pitching coach Larry Rothschild, second from left, catcher Victor Caratini, left, and first baseman Eric Hosmer (30) visit the mound in a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies, Friday, July 30, 2021, in San Diego.

(Derrick Tuskan / Associated Press)

ROSTER RANKINGS

• No. 13 | LHP Ryan Weathers
• No. 14 | LHP Adrián Morejon
• No. 15 | LHP Drew Pomeranz
• No. 16 | C Austin Nola
• No. 17 | C Luis Campusano
• No. 18 | 1B Eric Hosmer
• No. 19 | RHP Robert Suarez
• No. 20 | RHP Pierce Johnson
• No. 21 | RHP Craig Stammen
• No. 22 | OF Jurickson Profar
• No. 23 | RHP Luis Garcia
• No. 24 | LHP Tim Hill
• No. 25 | INF Ha-seong Kim
• No. 26 | RHP Emilio Pagán
• No. 27 | RHP Austin Adams
• No. 28 | RHP Reiss Knehr
• No. 29 | C Victor Caratini
• No. 30 | RHP Michel Báez
• No. 31 | LHP Ray Kerr
• No. 32 | RHP Javy Guerra
• No. 33 | RHP Nabil Crismatt
• No. 34 | RHP Steven Wilson
• No. 35 | C Jorge Alfaro
• No. 36 | RHP Efrain Contreras
• No. 37 | RHP Adrian Martinez
• No. 38 | RHP Pedro Avila
• No. 39 | INF Eguy Rosario
• No. 40 | RHP James Norwood