SF Giants trade former Phillies reliever to Padres in minor deal
The SF Giants traded right-handed pitcher Nick Duron to the San Diego Padres last week, per Duron's official player page. Since there has been no report of the Giants receiving anything from the Padres in return, San Diego likely parted with cash considerations. Duron signed a minor-league deal with the Giants during the offseason, but made his big-league debut with the Phillies in 2022. Duron had a 2.25 ERA with nine strikeouts and 11 walks in eight innings pitched with the Giants Triple-A affiliate this season.
Duron was drafted by the Red Sox in the 31st round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of Clark College in Vancouver, Washington. While the righty played his high school and college ball in the Pacific Northwest, Duron was born in Salinas, California.
The Red Sox released Duron prior to the 2019 season and briefly played with the Southern Illinois Miners in the independent Frontier League before he landed a minor-league deal with the Mariners. In Seattle's organization, Duron moved to the bullpen full-time and immediately found success. At High-A Modesto in the hitter-friendly California League, Duron recorded a 2.23 ERA with 51 strikeouts and 17 walks in in 36.1 innings pitched.
Duron's momentum was stalled by the canceled minor-league season in 2020, but he reached Triple-A with the Mariners in 2021 before once again reaching free agency. The Phillies signed Duron to a minor-league contract, and he posted a 2.77 ERA in 57 appearances with their Triple-A affiliate. His impressive numbers earned a brief call-up to the majors. Duron allowed a pair of hits with one strikeout across one scoreless inning of work on July 13th against the Blue Jays before he was optioned back to the minors.
Nick Duron did receive an invitation to SF Giants big-league camp this spring, but he was quickly optioned to the minors. During spring training, Duron allowed one earned run across three innings pitched with four strikeouts, two walks, and two hits.