Ethan Salas

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked San Diego Padres #1 prospect in 2026
  BA Grade/Risk: 55/Average
  
  Adjusted Grade: 45
  
  Track Record: The top prospect in the 2023 international signing period, Salas’ $5.6 million bonus was the highest in the class. He made his pro debut that same season with Low-A Lake Elsinore, but the Padres got everyone’s attention when they promoted the then-17-year-old to High-A Fort Wayne and then Double-A San Antonio. Salas spent the entirety of the 2024 season with Fort Wayne, where he hit .206/.288/.311 with 33 extra-base hits and 10 stolen bases. He proceeded to play in the Arizona Fall League with Peoria and was named an AFL all-star. Salas’ 2025 campaign was limited to just 10 games with San Antonio due to a stress fracture in his back.
  
  Scouting Report: Salas is a defense-first prospect who stands out for his Gold Glove-caliber defense. He has ultra-soft hands, receives the ball well and does an outstanding job of controlling balls in the dirt. Salas’ transfers are quick, and he consistently delivers strong, accurate throws to bases. Between his plus arm, receiving skills and ability to handle pitching staffs, he emphatically checks a lot of boxes defensively. Salas’ offensive outlook is far more murky. Mechanically, he stands fairly tall in the lefthanded batter’s box with a slightly open front side and an ear-high handset. Salas has an under control operation which includes a slight barrel tip that serves as a timing mechanism and a small stride. It’s a simple and easy swing without a whole lot of moving parts. In 2024, Salas made a handful of small adjustments that ended up having a positive impact on his game. His taller stance and raised handset are a byproduct of him wanting to put more of an emphasis on working down and through the ball. Salas’ bat-to-ball skills are above-average, and between 2024 and 2025 he’s posted an overall in-zone contact rate of 86%. While Salas’ power is geared more toward doubles than home runs, he has an all-fields approach and has shown he can drive the ball from gap to gap. Salas has long demonstrated an understanding of the strike zone, and he’s decreased his strikeout rate in each of his professional seasons. Between 2023 and 2024 it sank from 25.8% to 20.9%. Salas is a bit susceptible to secondary pitches—especially changeups—which yield the majority of his swings and misses.
  
  The Future: It’s no secret that 2026 is a big year for Salas. After a topsy-turvy 2024 season and an injury-shortened 2025, the 19-year-old backstop has logged just 123 professional games since the conclusion of the 2023 season. His defense serves as a reassuring anchor to his profile, but eventual offensive profile is up in the air. Salas certainly fits the mold of a hit-over-power player, but there are questions as to how much he’s going to hit. He could catch in the big leagues tomorrow, but he will need to prove that he can produce at the plate.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 45 | Power: 45 | Run: 45 | Field: 70 | Arm: 60.
• 
  Ranked San Diego Padres #2 prospect in 2025
  BA Grade/Risk: 60/High.
  
  Track Record: Salas was the top prospect in the 2023 international signing period and signed with the Padres for $5.6 million, the highest bonus in the class. He made his pro debut that season with Low-A Lake Elsinore a few days before turning 17 years old. The Padres promoted Salas to High-A Fort Wayne in August and then to Double-A San Antonio later that month. He spent all of 2024 with Fort Wayne, hitting .206/.288/.311 with 27 doubles and four home runs in 111 games before appearing in the Arizona Fall League.
  
  Scouting Report: Salas stands almost upright in the box with a somewhat high handset and a low-maintenance, repeatable lefthanded swing. He has a slight barrel tip in his load and is a small strider with an appealing quickness and compactness to his swing. After a slow start to the season, he started to stand taller in the box, raised his hands and put more of an emphasis on working down and through the ball. What followed was a strong month of August in which he laced 11 doubles and hit two home runs. Salas has above-average bat-to-ball skills and a polished approach, working to all parts of the field. His home run power comes almost exclusively from center field to right. Salas’ calling card has long been his defense. He has soft hands, receives the ball well and does an excellent job of corralling pitches in the dirt. His transfers are ultra quick, and he has a comfortably plus, accurate arm. He has shown at a young age that he can both handle and lead pitching staffs.
  
  The Future: If Salas doesn’t begin 2025 at Double-A San Antonio, he will get there in relatively short order. He could make his big league debut as soon as 2026. Salas profiles as a potential Gold Glove-caliber catcher with advanced offensive ability.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 55 | Power: 50 | Run: 45 | Fielding: 70 | Arm: 60
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55 | Power: 50 | Run: 45 | Field: 70 | Arm: 60.
• 
  Ranked San Diego Padres #1 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 70/Very High
  
  Track Record: The Padres had $5.8 million to spend in the 2023 international signing class and they gave almost all of it--$5.6 million, tops among all international bonuses last year--to Salas. He is a rare five-tool catcher and a third-generation talent from one of his country’s best-known baseball families. Salas landed on the Padres’ radar while they courted his older brother Jose, who signed with the Marlins for $2.8 million in 2019, and they expected him to move quickly given his bloodlines, familiarity with professional baseball and pure talent. A sore throwing shoulder delayed the start of Salas’ pro debut season in 2023, but the Padres still assigned him to Low-A Lake Elsinore in late May while he was still a few days shy of his 17th birthday. A 16-year-old playing in full-season ball is exceedingly rare. The only others in recent history are Adrian Beltre in 1996 and Edgar Renteria in 1993, two players who, it was later learned, were illegally signed at age 15. Salas hit the ground running in the California League, winning the league’s player of the month award for July, which played into the Padres’ decision to aggressively promote him to High-A Fort Wayne in early August. Salas put up just a .472 OPS in nine games, but the Padres believed in his makeup and skill enough to promote him to Double-A San Antonio well before the Midwest League season ended. The move kept Salas developing alongside the organization’s next wave of talent. A knee sprain ended Salas’ season after nine games in the Texas League, but he should be ready by spring training.
  
  Scouting Report: Salas boasts a quick, compact swing and keeps his barrel in the hitting zone for a long time. He doesn’t yet have the raw power that Francisco Alvarez or Gary Sanchez showed as prospects, but he was already taking 97 mph fastballs over the wall as a teenager during his pro debut and is easy to project for more over-the-fence pop as he matures. Salas also already shows the ability to make adjustments on the fly. For example, he got back in the zone for a standout July after chasing early in his stay in Lake Elsinore. That’s an excellent profile for a corner outfielder, but what makes Salas’ potential even greater is that he’s an excellent defensive catcher for his age, showcasing soft hands, athletic blocking ability and outstanding receiving and exchanges. He also has a slightly above-average arm that should tick up to at least plus with natural strength progression. His arm already plays up because of his efficient transfer and release, leading to pop times under 1.9 seconds on throws to second base. Salas’ maturity showed as he emerged as a proactive partner in game-planning with older pitchers after getting his legs under him in pro ball.
  
  The Future: The Padres’ unquestioned catcher of the future--and perhaps sooner than many realize--Salas is a superstar in the making who could one day earn MVP votes, a la Buster Posey, for his ability to impact the game with his bat, defense and leadership skills with a pitching staff. n
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 60 | Power: 60 | Run: 45 | Field: 70 | Arm: 60
• 
  Ranked San Diego Padres #7 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 55/Extreme
  
  Track Record: The younger brother of Marlins shortstop prospect Jose Salas, Ethan has a remarkable combination of tools, polish and game awareness for his age. He's in the conversation for the best pure hitter in the class, with a lefthanded swing that's quick, compact and adjustable, keeping his barrel through the hitting zone for a long time.
  
  Scouting Report: He stays calm in the box with good rhythm and balance, recognizing pitches well with a mature approach that leads to frequent barrels and makes him a high on-base threat. Salas doesn't have the raw power that Francisco Alvarez or Gary Sanchez showed when they were amateurs, but as he's gotten stronger, he is showing more over-the-fence pop with the physical projection to grow into average or potentially more power. That would be a good profile for even a corner outfielder, but what makes Salas' potential even greater is that he's an excellent defensive catcher for his age. Salas is an athletic catcher whose blocking, receiving and throwing mechanics are all exemplary for his age, with a slightly above-average arm that should tick up to at least a 60 with natural strength progression. His arm already plays up because of his efficient transfer and release, leading to pop times under 1.9 seconds in games.
  
  The Future: Salas should make his pro debut in the DSL in 2023.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55. Power: 45. Speed: 40. Fielding: 60. Arm: 55

Top 100 Rankings

• Ranked Baseball America's #61 prospect in 2025
• Ranked Baseball America's #17 prospect in 2024
• Ranked Baseball America's #6 prospect in 2023

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 55/Extreme
  
  Track Record: The younger brother of Marlins shortstop prospect Jose Salas, Ethan has a remarkable combination of tools, polish and game awareness for his age. He's in the conversation for the best pure hitter in the class, with a lefthanded swing that's quick, compact and adjustable, keeping his barrel through the hitting zone for a long time.
  
  Scouting Report: He stays calm in the box with good rhythm and balance, recognizing pitches well with a mature approach that leads to frequent barrels and makes him a high on-base threat. Salas doesn't have the raw power that Francisco Alvarez or Gary Sanchez showed when they were amateurs, but as he's gotten stronger, he is showing more over-the-fence pop with the physical projection to grow into average or potentially more power. That would be a good profile for even a corner outfielder, but what makes Salas' potential even greater is that he's an excellent defensive catcher for his age. Salas is an athletic catcher whose blocking, receiving and throwing mechanics are all exemplary for his age, with a slightly above-average arm that should tick up to at least a 60 with natural strength progression. His arm already plays up because of his efficient transfer and release, leading to pop times under 1.9 seconds in games.
  
  The Future: Salas should make his pro debut in the DSL in 2023.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55. Power: 45. Speed: 40. Fielding: 60. Arm: 55
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 55/Extreme
  
  Track Record: The younger brother of Marlins shortstop prospect Jose Salas, Ethan has a remarkable combination of tools, polish and game awareness for his age. He's in the conversation for the best pure hitter in the class, with a lefthanded swing that's quick, compact and adjustable, keeping his barrel through the hitting zone for a long time.
  
  Scouting Report: He stays calm in the box with good rhythm and balance, recognizing pitches well with a mature approach that leads to frequent barrels and makes him a high on-base threat. Salas doesn't have the raw power that Francisco Alvarez or Gary Sanchez showed when they were amateurs, but as he's gotten stronger, he is showing more over-the-fence pop with the physical projection to grow into average or potentially more power. That would be a good profile for even a corner outfielder, but what makes Salas' potential even greater is that he's an excellent defensive catcher for his age. Salas is an athletic catcher whose blocking, receiving and throwing mechanics are all exemplary for his age, with a slightly above-average arm that should tick up to at least a 60 with natural strength progression. His arm already plays up because of his efficient transfer and release, leading to pop times under 1.9 seconds in games.
  
  The Future: Salas should make his pro debut in the DSL in 2023.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 55. Power: 45. Speed: 40. Fielding: 60. Arm: 55