Padres designate former top pitching prospect for assignment

The Padres announced Wednesday that they’ve designated righty Brent Honeywell Jr. for assignment, optioned catcher Brett Sullivan to Triple-A El Paso and placed lefty Tim Hill on the 15-day injured list with a sprained finger on his pitching hand. That sequence of moves will create the necessary roster space to add trade acquisitions Garrett Cooper, Scott Barlow and Ji Man Choi to the roster.

Honeywell, 28, spent five years ranked among baseball’s top 100 prospects at Baseball America but was repeatedly set back by injuries. He’s had a stunning four elbow surgeries dating back to 2018, completely derailing what looked to be a potential fast-track to MLB stardom. The 2014 second-rounder was in the upper minors by 22 years of age, tossing 136 2/3 innings of 3.49 ERA ball with a 30.3% strikeout rate and 6.2% walk rate between Double-A and Triple-A in 2017. He didn’t throw another pitch in an official game until the 2021 season in Triple-A.

Eventually traded to the A’s and outrighted off the 40-man roster, Honeywell became a free agent last offseason and signed a big league deal with the Padres. He’s pitched in 36 games out of the bullpen for San Diego this year, working to a 4.05 ERA with a 20.6% strikeout rate, 9.8% walk rate, 48.9% ground-ball rate and 1.54 HR/9. The 46 2/3 innings he’s pitched this year are more than he threw in 2021-22 combined.

Honeywell is averaging 95 mph on his heater but also has a below-average 10% swinging-strike rate and 28% opponents’ chase rate. He’s out of minor league options, so the Padres weren’t able to simply send him to the minors.

Now that the trade deadline has passed, Honeywell’s fate is rather straightforward. He’ll head for outright waivers, where all 29 other clubs will have the opportunity to place a claim. Waiver priority is based on a simple reverse standings — worst record to best — and contrary to common belief is not league-specific. If he’s placed directly onto waivers today, the A’s would have the first chance to claim him, followed by the Royals. He can be controlled via arbitration for another five seasons.