Triston McKenzie: Everything you need to know

The Padres reassigned McKenzie to minor-league camp Saturday. McKenzie was in Padres camp as a non-roster invitee after signing a minor-league contract in December. The team has had big question marks at the back of the rotation throughout spring, but McKenzie wasn't able to make a serious bid for a big-league role, posting a 9.95 ERA, 2.84 WHIP and 11:9 K:BB over 6.1 innings spanning four appearances. The right-hander has dealt with multiple injuries over the past three years and has struggled during his stints in the majors during that span, so he may need a prolonged run of success in the minors before he sees a big-league mound again.

McKenzie has averaged 95.7 mph with his four-seamer this spring, which is up a full two mph from last season, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. McKenzie has never reached 97 mph in a major-league game before, but he topped that mark 10 times in his last Cactus League appearance and peaked at 98.8 mph. The righty gained a bit of weight over the offseason and also pitched in winter ball for the first time, but he admitted to having "no idea" where the extra velocity is coming from. Unfortunately, McKenzie's results this spring have not been as encouraging as his velocity uptick, as he's been tagged for six runs with a 6:7 K:BB over 4.1 innings. McKenzie is in Padres camp as a non-roster invitee and is competing for a spot in the Padres' rotation. He looks to be on the outside looking in for now, but McKenzie will have another chance to improve his standing with an appearance Friday versus the Athletics. McKenzie -- who has a June opt-out clause in his contract -- has a 5.46 ERA over 24 appearances (20 starts) at the big-league level since 2023.

McKenzie signed a minor-league contract with the Padres on Thursday that includes an invitation to spring training, Aram Leighton of JustBaseball.com reports McKenzie gave up seven earned runs over 5.2 innings with the Guardians this past season before being outrighted to the minor leagues in late April. His performance didn't improve following his demotion, as he turned in a 7.40 ERA and 2.13 WHIP over 20.2 frames split between rookie ball and Triple-A. He'll now attempt to revive his career with the Padres, but he will likely have to prove he can handle minor-league hitters again before getting a shot with the big club.