Padres agree to $16.5 million agreement with former Yankees reliever Wandy Peralta. The agreement includes three opt-outs.Peralta, 32, is joining the Padres after three seasons with the New York Yankees. During his stint with the Yankees, he proved to be one of the franchise’s most consistent pitchers.
Peralta had a 2.82 ERA in 165 appearances for the Yankees, adding 11 saves and 32 holds to his 10-9 record. He appeared in 63 games last season, with a 2.83 ERA and 51 strikeouts. In 2023, he led the Yankees with 18 holds and rescued four games out of seven opportunities.
After suffering with the Cincinnati Reds for much of his first four MLB seasons, Peralta’s career took a turn for the better when he was grabbed off waivers by the San Francisco Giants late in the 2019 season.
Peralta has a 5.00 ERA in 177 appearances for the Reds. Since then, he has a 3.01 ERA in 208 games and a sub-3 ERA in the previous two seasons.It’s difficult to replace a player of Josh Hader’s level. Given their budget predicament entering the winter, the Padres most certainly expected to lose their All-Star closer in MLB free agency.
That’s exactly what happened as Hader signed a five-year, $95 million deal with the Houston Astros earlier this month.
In light of that, the majority of San Diego’s moves this winter have been on the pitching side. Four of the five players the Padres acquired from the Yankees in the Juan Soto trade are pitchers. The Padres also signed five-time NPB All-Star reliever Yuki Matsui and respected Korean reliever Woo Suk Go to bolster the bullpen.
Padres relievers ranked 10th in bullpen ERA last season but inconsistencies hurt San Diego’s playoff chances. Though perhaps not the biggest problem that San Diego needs to solve, there’s no denying AJ Preller and crew are making sure the bullpen isn’t the cause of a Padres downfall in 2024.
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