San Diego Padres Add Pitching Depth With RH Reliever

The San Diego Padres have added some depth to their pitching staff, signing right-handed reliever Brent Honeywell to a major league contract.

Right-hander Brent Honeywell and the San Diego Padres are in agreement on a major league deal, sources tell ESPN.

It's a split contract that will pay $725,000 if he's in the big leagues and $200,000 in the minor leagues. Honeywell, 27, spent last season in the A's organization.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 6, 2023

Per MLB Insider Jeff Passan, it's a split contract that will pay the 27-year-old $725,000 if he makes the big league roster, and $200,000 if in the minor leagues. 

Honeywell was in the Tampa Bay Rays organization for several years after they picked him in the second round of the 2014 June Draft. He was a Top 100 prospect in baseball for five straight years from 2016 through 2021. He began his minor league career as a starter and put up very strong numbers. 

But serious injuries (and the pandemic) wiped out three straight seasons for him; Tommy John surgery in 2018 was followed by a fractured elbow bone in 2019, and then the whole minor league season in 2020 was wiped out. 

He returned in 2021 and pitched in three games for the Rays, then spent last season in the Oakland A's system, where he struggled with another injury, an olecranon stress reaction in his throwing elbow. 

He finally seemed to right the ship in winter ball this year, where he had a 0.96 ERA in 28 innings as a reliever in the Dominican Winter League. The Padres are hoping that carries over.

Photo: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports