NEW YORK — The most expensive confluence in major-league history is happening here this week.
When the New York Mets hosted the Padres on Monday, it marked the teams’ first meeting since Joe Musgrove delivered a dramatic, decisive performance here in October. It also marked the first time two rosters shared a field while carrying more than $600 million in combined payroll.
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Arguably, no two franchises had a more dramatic offseason. The Padres signed Xander Bogaerts, replaced Manny Machado’s previous mega-contract with an even bigger deal, and opened the season with an estimated $249 million payroll. The Mets ultimately did not sign Carlos Correa, but they still signed Justin Verlander and Kodai Senga, retained Edwin Díaz and Brandon Nimmo, and assembled a record $358 million club. For both sides, this is not exactly a season that hinges on internal development.
Yet, in Tuesday’s 4-2 win over the priciest team ever, the Padres received pivotal performances from the few homegrown players on their 26-man roster. Machado provided a go-ahead double in the middle of the game, and Bogaerts provided a necessary insurance home run near the end, but they were positioned to provide in large part because of the battery of Ryan Weathers and Luis Campusano.
Weathers, for the second time in his big-league career, threw at least five innings while allowing no more than one run. Campusano registered a career-high three hits while improving to 4-0 in games he’s caught this season. Steven Wilson, the only other Padre drafted and developed by the organization, also contributed in a meaningful way, protecting a one-run lead by pitching a scoreless eighth.
“We’re just trying to do whatever we can to help the team win ballgames,” Weathers said. “And, you know, we won one tonight.”
The Padres won this latest clash of National League contenders while getting obvious surplus value from two players making barely more than the league minimum.
Weathers, in his season debut, had shown promise with five innings of two-run ball as essentially San Diego’s sixth starter. Tuesday, the 23-year-old lefty recovered from a tense beginning to throw five more innings and hold a veteran Mets lineup to one run. It was just the second time in his career that he had gone five or more innings in consecutive outings.
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The first time came in 2021, a reminder of how early he was thrust into the majors and how much he can still improve. Weathers, after an unusually precocious start to his career and a humbling season in Triple A, appears to be reemerging as a legitimate option for a Padres team with championship hopes.
“He’s completely different. Completely different guy,” said Machado, who was patrolling third base in 2020 when Weathers became only the second pitcher to make his big-league debut in the postseason. “He looks better physically and mentally. He’s in a better state of mind. You know, he’s definitely trying to get better every single day, and that’s pretty satisfying to see.”
Motivated by a dismal 2022 campaign in which he surfaced just once in the majors, Weathers changed his delivery and his repertoire in the winter. He adopted an over-the-head windup, finding that it made him feel smoother mechanically. Meanwhile, he gained fastball velocity and more separation between his four-seamer and his secondaries.
“He’s getting more action with his pitches, and it’s just making his four-seam a lot better,” Campusano said. “It’s just a big difference in what he’s doing and what he’s working on, and it’s just translating to the game well.”
Tuesday, it did not translate immediately. Weathers’ first 12 pitches resulted in a walk, a bunt single and another walk. But then he struck out Pete Alonso on a full-count changeup that showed good depth. And then he got Mark Canha to ground into a double play with his new, sweeping slider.
“That was huge,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said. “You get tested in the first inning here in a place like this, that really showed me a lot, being able to get out of it.”
While Weathers settled in to throw four more innings, his catcher also showed well. Campusano singled in the second, singled in the fifth and doubled in the ninth, making hard contact each time. On defense, he steered Weathers and four relievers through nine closely contested innings. His work with the bullpen arms was especially encouraging.
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“Last year, we felt great about the game plan with the starters,” Melvin said. “It was the bullpen guys that, you know, you have to have game plans with everybody. Up to that point, that’s where he struggled a little bit.
“You get four relievers today to close out the game, our plus guys that we’re using at this point. (Campusano) was always engaged in signs and everything he was getting from me, so it’s significant strides.”
Campusano was once seen as the Padres’ catcher of the future, a top-100 prospect with rare offensive potential. But then his hitting, in limited looks, was not quite as good as initially advertised. His defense, along with his concentration, continued to lag over the past couple of years.
Now, he is making a case to be the team’s catcher of the present — or to at least earn more playing time alongside veteran Austin Nola. He is still only 24. Teammates and coaches say Campusano, in the offseason and throughout spring training, demonstrated greater focus and commitment than they had seen before.
“He’s always been a good receiver behind the plate,” Weathers said. “His game-calling is getting better and better. He’s getting more confidence behind the dish. … You want that confidence from your counterpart every time you go out there, and he’s been doing a really good job.”
Weathers and Campusano know each other well. The two spent the shortened 2020 season together at the Padres’ alternate training site. They were members of the team’s playoff bubble that year, mostly watching and learning and occasionally marveling at where they were. Weathers, before he was tabbed to pitch against the Dodgers that postseason, was starstruck when he crossed paths with Clayton Kershaw. Then he found himself pitching against Kershaw’s team. Two years of up-and-down development ensued. The same was true for Campusano.
Now, both young players could be important contributors as the Padres try to end the Dodgers’ reign over the National League West. Weathers may be asked to reinforce a thin bullpen in the near future, but San Diego needs his innings wherever they come. Campusano, meanwhile, could work his way into a roughly even timeshare with Nola.
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The two catchers entered Tuesday with a combined .108/.171/.108 slash line. No team had gotten less production from its backstops. Then Campusano flashed his offensive potential with his first three-hit game in the majors.
“He’s been doing a nice job for us behind the plate, too,” Melvin said. “Every game he’s started at this point, we’ve won. And those games, getting through games like that (is) going to be big for him. I’ve been impressed.”
For now, earning more playing time than Nola might be a stretch. The older catcher, despite his offensive limitations, remains the Padres’ most trusted option behind the plate. Barring an injury, Campusano is unlikely to catch Yu Darvish or Blake Snell, the club’s two trickiest pitchers to catch.
But, with the Padres’ lack of catching depth, Campusano must be more than an occasional backup. At least whenever Weathers starts, he will be the preferred option behind the plate. The two have plenty of history together.
Tuesday, both players showed something.
“We’re still developing in this game,” Campusano said. “You learn everything little by little and you take that and try to translate it to the games and make different adjustments as we go on. We’re going to continue that.”
(Top photo of Ryan Weathers: Brad Penner / USA Today)
