The San Diego Padres have signed veteran pitcher Cole Hamels, per sources.
Cole Hamels is a World Series winner, formerly of the Philadelphia Phillies. He’s been an All-Star. He also hasn’t played in the majors since 2020 in a brief stint with the Atlanta Braves.
Yet, Hamels showed interest in returning to an MLB organization this offseason, and held a private workout for teams. After a brief bidding war, the Padres and A.J. Preller won out.
In Hamels last professional season with the Braves, he pitched to a 8.10 ERA in just one outing. Prior to that, he went 7-7 with a 3.81 ERA with the Chicago Cubs.
Hamels career ERA is 3.43 in 423 outings. This comes just days after San Diego signed free-agent starter Michael Wacha.
What should the Padres expect from Cole Hamels?
Hamels had three surgeries in the last couple of years, per ESPN, one to his left shoulder, another his right knee and the third to his left foot. Still, Hamels feels confident and is ready to give this comeback thing a shot.
“So just understanding what was kind of wrong, getting it fixed and then actually being able to rehab it, just kind of addressing the right areas and not trying to overcompensate, I think has kind of helped,” Hamels told The Associated Press.
San Diego’s contract with Hamels is of the minor-league variety, so he will enter Spring Training with low expectations, but a chance to make the Opening Day roster. Considering his experience, Hamels should be confident.
Hamels explained away his struggles near the end of his career to injuries, sourcing the surgeries he received.
“I think all teams, they all knew about it,” Hamels said. “But I could just get through it. I could play. But with everything kind of happening, it was getting worse and worse and worse. I couldn’t push. I couldn’t barely sleep. It’s hard to train when you’ve got body parts that are not doing what they’re supposed to do to allow you to do what you want to do.”
He’ll get another shot to prove himself in San Diego.