Padres Still Unsure Where Xander Bogaerts Will Play in 2025

Valentina Martinez | Nov 17, 2024

Oct 6, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; San Diego Padres second baseman Xander Bogaerts (2) celebrates in the dugout after hitting a solo home run in the eighth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during game two of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The San Diego Padres haven't made a final decision on where Xander Bogaerts will play in 2025. However, the team plans on informing Bogaerts whether he will be a second baseman or a shortstop sooner rather than later.

Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller shared some insight on the looming decision at the General Manager Meetings earlier this week.

“I think probably we’ll try to have some information earlier for him this year than we did last year,” Preller told Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune. “I think it was cool the way he handled things. I was a little late, because we had a lot of questions about the roster. … So we’ll get to Xander here in a little bit to have that conversation, be respectful of him. … We’ll have that conversation with him here sooner rather than later.”

When Bogaerts arrived to spring training last year, he wasn't aware that the Padres were planning on switching him to second base. Bogaerts had never played the position before and had to hit the ground running.

As Bogaerts adjusted to the new spot, he had to get used to making different movements which resulted in hip issues. From 2014-23, Bogaerts started over a thousand games at shortstop. In the final two weeks of the regular season, Bogaerts went back to being an infield quarterback after Ha-Seong Kim sustained a shoulder injury.

Kim had labrum surgery in October and is expected to miss at least the first month of the 2025 season. He is a free agent and it's almost a guarantee Kim won't return to San Diego as he is looking for a multi-year lucrative offer.

The Padres aren't willing to pay what Kim is looking for. That means there is an open spot at shortstop, which Bogaerts could easily fill, but the Padres may have other plans.

As the offseason unfolds, it'll become clear whether Bogaerts will play shortstop or second in 2025.