Padres’ Ethan Salas debuts as youngest MLB catcher since Ivan Rodriguez in 1991
Three months after turning 20, Ethan Salas started behind the plate Wednesday in his San Diego Padres debut, becoming the youngest player to catch a major-league game since Ivan Rodriguez in 1991.
Salas went 0-for-4 and caught each inning of a 7-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. The Padres’ top prospect had joined the club the previous day after being called up from Triple-A El Paso.
At 20 years, 93 days old, Salas is the youngest player in the big leagues and the youngest catcher since Rodriguez began his Hall of Fame career with the Texas Rangers at 19. Salas is also the Padres’ youngest catcher since Mike Ivie debuted shortly after his 19th birthday in 1971.
Batting sixth on Wednesday, Salas flied out to the warning track in his first plate appearance, grounded out in his second and struck out in his final two at-bats.
On defense, where he is considered most advanced, he recorded a putout on a pop-up and used MLB’s Automated Ball-Strike system (ABS) to challenge a ball call successfully.
Scouts had long envisioned an early arrival for Salas. His father, uncle and older brother, Minnesota Twins infield prospect Jose Salas Jr., have all played professional baseball in the U.S. The Padres signed Ethan Salas for $5.6 million in January 2023, weeks after he caught a Venezuelan Winter League game at 16.
Some team officials initially predicted Salas would reach the majors before his 18th birthday, which would have made him the youngest catcher since Ed Kirkpatrick debuted for the Los Angeles Angels in 1962. However, Salas experienced up-and-down development over the past three years as the Padres aggressively promoted him through the minor leagues.
After missing most of the 2025 season with a stress reaction in his lower back, Salas impressed this year with Double-A San Antonio and El Paso. In 96 games between the two affiliates, he hit .296/.374/.448 with 10 home runs.
With Luis Rengifo and Gavin Sheets on the injured list, the Padres promoted the left-handed-hitting Salas to an expanded roster Tuesday, planning to deploy him as a third catcher, designated hitter and pinch hitter.
Because Salas was added to the 40-man roster by Sept. 1, he is eligible for the postseason. The Padres (73-67), who have lost seven of their last nine games, are even with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the race for the National League’s final wild-card spot. The Diamondbacks currently hold a tiebreaker because of their in-division record.