Padres Show Patience With Blash
PEORIA, Ariz.—The Padres seem willing to tolerate outfielder Jabari Blash’s growing pains, in light of home runs such as the opposite-field drive the Rule 5 draftee hit on March 7.
Though he didn’t get all of the fastball from Brewers righthander Taylor Jungmann, the chiseled, 6-foot-5 Blash still lined it over the right-field wall.
“When he runs into a baseball, it’s a lot of damage,” big league manager Andy Green said. “He didn’t even square (the ball) up completely, so you realize how much power he has inside of himself.”
At the time, Blash was hitless through six Cactus League at-bats, with four strikeouts and three walks. He carried a .207 average through 18 spring games.
The Padres have an opening in left field after losing all-star Justin Upton in free agency, and Blash was among the candidates to replace him.
San Diego has to keep Blash on its 25-man roster in 2016 or waive him and, if he clears waivers, return him to the Mariners. The Padres also are evaluating three other Rule 5 picks this spring: righthanders Josh Martin, Luis Perdomo and Blake Smith.
Keeping a raw rookie could cause a team to lose more games, but losses are nothing new for the Padres. They’ve finished under .500 in seven of the last eight years, so they’re in a good position to see if Blash can tap into his power.
The 26-year-old Blash gave up baseball for a few years as a young teenager. He credits his mom for prodding him back onto the fields in the Virgin Islands.
Enticed by his athleticism, three teams would draft Blash, two after he moved to the U.S., where he played for Miami Dade JC. He signed in 2010 with Seattle, which took him in the eighth round.
FATHER FIGURES
• Austin Hedges showed improved hitting to the opposite field early in spring training. The catcher, who had a two-homer game, will begin the season at Triple-A El Paso if he doesn’t make the Opening Day roster.
• Top prospect shortstop Javier Guerra made several impressive defensive plays early in camp. Double-A outfielder Manuel Margot covered a lot of ground in center field and went 4-for-12 in the Cactus League. The Padres obtained Guerra, Margot and two other Red Sox prospects last offseason in when trading closer Craig Kimbrel.
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