Padres pregame: CJ Abrams making MLB debut; Jorge Alfaro gets first start

The 349^th plate appearance of CJ Abrams’ career in professional baseball will come in the majors.

The Padres’ top positional prospect will make his major league debut in the eighth spot and at shortstop in Friday’s game against the Diamondbacks at Chase Field (6:40 p.m.).

Abrams, 21, hit his way onto the opening day roster with two homers, three steals and a .324/.359/.514 batting line over 17 Cactus League games this spring.

It was his first action since fracturing his left tibia and spraining his left MCL last summer at Double-A San Antonio (.782 OPS, 2 homers, 13 steals in 42 games). He had been prepping to play in the Arizona Fall League when a shoulder injury kept him from suiting up.

Abrams also lost the 2020 season to the pandemic, but spent the entire year at the alternate site. A year earlier he was the rookie-level Arizona League MVP (1.104 OPS, 3 HRs, 14 steals, 32 games) after signing for $5.2 million in 2019 as the sixth overall pick in a talent-rich draft at the top: The Orioles selected Adley Rutschman with the first overall pick in 2019 and Bobby Witt Jr. and Andrew Vaughn when to the Royals and White Sox, respectively, via the next two picks. The Tigers selected Riley Greene with the fifth overall pick.

Today, the top of MLB.com’s top-100 prospects rankings look like this:

1. SS Bobby Witt Jr.
2. C Adley Rutschman
3. OF Julio Rodriguez
4. 1B Spencer Torkelson
5. OF Riley Greene
6. SS CJ Abrams

Vaughn played 127 games for Chicago last year. Witt debuted on Thursday and Rodriguez and Torkelson are around the corner. Rutschman and Greene are still waiting,

And Abrams’ time arrives in a few hours.

Beyond Abrams playing over Kim, the changes for Game 2 include Trent Grisham back in the leadoff spot against the right-handed Merrill Kelly, Jorge Alfaro getting his first start behind the plate, in the nine-hole, after forcing his way into the Padres’ plans with a blistering spring (4 HRs, 1.462 OPS) and left-hander Sean Manaea on the mound for is Padres debut.

Here is how the Diamondbacks will line up for Game 2:

Friday’s pitching matchup

Padres LHP Sean Manaea (11-10, 3.91)

The 30-year-old former Athletic has held left-handed hitters to a .601 OPS over his career, compared to righties’ .739 mark. This is his first career appearance at Chase Field. He has a 4.20 ERA in three career starts (2-1) against Arizona.

Here is how Manaea has fared against current Diamondbacks:

Diamondbacks RHP Merrill Kelly (7-11, 4.44)

The third-year pitcher is 7-2 with a 2.60 ERA, 51 strikeouts and a 1.18 WHIP in 10 career starts (55 1/3 IP) against the Padres. Among the Padres who’ve struggled vs. Merrill: 3B Manny Machado (.458 OPS, 28 PA), OF Wil Myers (.277 OPS, 15 PA), 2B Jake Cronenworth (.450 OPS) and OF Jurickson Profar (.125 OPS, 8 PA).

Here is how Kelly has fared against current Padres:

The Diamondbacks’ Merrill Kelly vs. current Padres

(Baseball-reference.com)