Padres outright Ty Adcock and release Marco Gonzales amid catcher crunch

What happened

The Padres announced they have outrighted reliever Ty Adcock following his designation for assignment over the weekend, and separately released left-hander Marco Gonzales from his minor league contract, per the MLB.com transaction log as cited by MLB Trade Rumors. Adcock never threw a pitch in a big league game for San Diego despite holding a major league contract he signed in December.

Both moves trace back to a catcher emergency that has been quietly reshaping San Diego's 40-man roster. With both Freddy Fermin and Luis Campusano unavailable, the Padres needed to clear space to select catcher Rodolfo Durán and catcher Blake Hunt onto the MLB roster. Adcock's spot was the one that gave way when Hunt was selected. As a general matter of league mechanics, the 40-man is the reserve list a player must appear on before he can be called up — so when two catchers go down and the club needs two replacements, two other names have to come off somewhere.

Why it matters

The Adcock outright is the kind of transaction that looks like a footnote until you trace the chain of events behind it. A reliever who signed a major league deal in December, was sidelined through the early part of the season on the minor league injured list, was only activated at Triple-A El Paso on June 3, and then never threw a pitch in the majors for the team that signed him — that is a sequence that tends to end exactly this way. Per the club announcement, he has been outrighted rather than released, meaning he retains a minor league assignment for now. Under general league mechanics, a player in that situation may have the right to elect free agency depending on his service time, though nothing in the material specifies which way Adcock is leaning.

The Gonzales release is a cleaner transaction on its face: a minor league contract, per MLB Trade Rumors, does not place a player on the 40-man roster to begin with, so his departure does not open a spot so much as it closes a chapter. Minor league deals of that variety often carry opt-out provisions and are, by their nature, the sport's most quietly renewable resource. This one, apparently, was not renewed.

What the pair of moves illustrates is how quickly a catcher situation can ripple outward through a roster. Fermin and Campusano are the Padres' top two options at the position, and their simultaneous absence forced San Diego to carry Durán and Hunt — two 40-man additions that required two 40-man subtractions. Adcock and Gonzales were those subtractions.

The numbers

Adcock, 29, has pitched parts of three seasons at the big league level, suiting up previously with the Mariners and Mets. Across 23 innings of major league work, he has posted a 5.48 ERA. His 2026 campaign was interrupted before it truly began: he was sidelined on the minor league injured list through the early months of the season and was only activated at Triple-A El Paso on June 3. In his limited action there, he walked three of five opponents he faced, per MLB Trade Rumors — a sample that, while small, did not build a compelling case for a promotion.

The Padres carry a record of 91-71 (.562), sitting 2nd in the NL West, 9 games back in the division race. On the Wild Card ledger, they rank 1st, sitting +3.0 relative to the cut line, and have won their last two games heading into a road series.

Where the club stands

San Diego heads to Globe Life Field for a three-game set against the Texas Rangers beginning Friday, June 19, with Randy Vásquez lined up against Jacob deGrom. Walker Buehler is the probable for Saturday, June 20, opposing MacKenzie Gore. Sunday, June 21 closes the series with Wandy Peralta against Nathan Eovaldi.

The Padres have been eliminated from the division race, but their Wild Card position — 1st, +3.0 above the cut line — gives every roster decision a different kind of urgency. The catcher situation that triggered these moves is one the club will need to stabilize before October becomes a real conversation, and the 40-man arithmetic behind it is a reminder that depth is never quite as abstract as it looks in June.

The streak sits at W2, which is the sort of modest momentum a team heading into a road series against a Rangers rotation featuring deGrom and Eovaldi would prefer to carry rather than surrender.

What we don't know yet

### Is there a timeline for Fermin or Campusano returning?

MLB Trade Rumors does not specify the nature of the injuries or unavailability affecting either catcher, so no return timeline is reported. Until one or both are reinstated, the Padres are expected to carry Durán and Hunt as their options behind the plate, with the 40-man implications that entails.

It is also not reported whether Adcock will elect free agency following the outright or accept the minor league assignment. Under general league mechanics, that decision typically belongs to the player, and nothing in the material addresses which direction he is considering.

Gonzales's next destination is similarly unaddressed. A release from a minor league contract leaves a pitcher free to sign elsewhere, but MLB Trade Rumors does not report any known interest or next step for the left-hander.

What to watch

The most immediate roster question the Padres face is how long they need to carry two backup catchers on the active roster. If Fermin or Campusano is reinstated, that opens a 40-man spot that could be directed toward other needs — whether a reliever, a depth piece, or something else entirely. None of that is reported; it is simply the operational logic that follows from the situation as described.

On the pitching side, the Gonzales release closes off one depth option in the minor league system, and the Adcock outright removes another arm from the 40-man picture, at least for now. How San Diego manages its bullpen depth through the final weeks of the regular season — particularly with a Wild Card position worth protecting — is worth tracking as the roster continues to take its late-season shape.

The Rangers series opens Friday with Vásquez against deGrom, which is the kind of matchup that has a way of clarifying things quickly.