SAN DIEGO – The San Diego Padres have inked catcher Elias Díaz to a one-year deal through the 2025 season, with a mutual option for 2026, as announced by President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller.
Díaz, 34, split his 2024 season between the Colorado Rockies and Padres, hitting a combined .265 (86-for-325) with 20 doubles, six home runs, 39 RBIs, and 27 runs scored across 96 games. After being released by Colorado on August 18, Díaz signed a minor league contract with the Padres on August 27, and his contract was purchased on September 1. His 86 hits and 20 doubles last season were just shy of his career-high marks set in 2023 with Colorado (130 hits and 25 doubles). Díaz posted a .992 fielding percentage (4 errors, 500 total chances) for the season, including a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage (0 errors, 66 total chances) in 12 games (7 starts) for the Padres in September. He made his postseason debut with San Diego in Game 2 of the NLDS at Dodger Stadium after 724 regular season games, which ranked sixth among active players before their first career playoff appearance (behind J.T. Realmuto’s 1,005, Marcell Ozuna’s 931, Whit Merrifield’s 907, Josh Bell’s 852, and Adam Frazier’s 821).
The Maracaibo, Venezuela native has a career .251 batting average (582-for-2317) with a .304 OBP, 123 doubles, four triples, 62 home runs, 297 RBIs, and 242 runs scored over 724 Major League games with the Pittsburgh Pirates (2015-19), Rockies (2020-24), and Padres (2024). Díaz earned his first National League All-Star selection in 2023 with Colorado, becoming the first Rockies catcher to make the Midsummer Classic. He was named the All-Star Game MVP after hitting a two-run home run off Baltimore Orioles’ closer Félix Bautista in the eighth inning, leading the NL to a 3-2 victory.
