CHICAGO -- Two veteran Padres right-handers, Tyson Ross and Jordan Lyles, were claimed off waivers on Sunday, making room on the roster for reliever Trey Wingenter, who was selected from Triple-A El Paso.
Hinting at more moves in the coming days and weeks, manager Andy Green called the Padres' moves prior to Sunday's series finale vs. the Cubs at Wrigley Field "one big step closer to the future for us."
"In both those situations it's an opportunity for us to look at our younger guys," Green said. "There is a sadness to the day, though, because those two guys are well-respected and were very much appreciated in our clubhouse."
Ross, an All-Star with San Diego in 2014, was claimed by the Cardinals and will join the team in Miami for its upcoming series. Lyles, who has enjoyed somewhat of a breakout year, was claimed by the Brewers and departed Sunday morning for Milwaukee. It won't be long before Lyles sees his former team again, as the Padres begin a three-game series vs. the Brewers on Tuesday.
"It's good to see him go have the opportunity to pitch in meaningful August and September baseball games," Green said of Ross. "I think the world of him.
"[Lyles] pitched himself into the situation where another team wanted him this time of year."
Following Sunday's 10-6 win, Green said the Padres will select right-hander Brett Kennedy on Tuesday from El Paso to fill the vacancy left by Lyles. Kennedy will make his Major League debut when he starts on Wednesday vs. the Brewers at Miller Park. The 24-year-old Kennedy is 10-0 with a 2.72 ERA in 16 starts in Triple-A.
Wingenter, a 6-foot-7 right-hander, was still seemingly in awe of what was happening as he spoke with reporters before Sunday's game. He said this is his first time in Chicago, arriving around 2 a.m. CT.
"It's something I'd always dream about, think about, but you never really fathom that feeling until you get told you're heading up here," Wingenter said about his initial reaction to getting the callup. "I don't even know if I had a real thought or words or anything."
The original plan was for Wingenter to make the Padres' roster out of Spring Training, but he struggled with some mechanical issues during camp. Wingenter naturally throws across his body a little bit, but he said he was doing it too much in the spring, which hindered his command.
Down in Triple-A, he was able to take his time and work on fixing what he called "directional stuff that got a little out of whack." His slider, he said, has improved a lot since then because he can better locate its sharp bite.
"Every single person that's been through there has been raving about the way the ball's been coming out of his hand, the way he's been pitching," Green said. "Trey's going to pitch here for a long time. He's going to pitch well here, no matter what kind of start he gets off to. He's got a bright future. We all know that."
Drafted out of Auburn in the 17th round of the 2015 MLB Draft, Wingenter said his parents were visiting the school for a friend's graduation when he called them with the good news. They didn't even go back to their home in Huntsville, Ala. Instead, they went straight to the Birmingham Airport and came to Wrigley for their son's potential Major League debut.
The Padres are going to be calling more players up from Triple-A soon, perhaps as early as this upcoming week.
"This move makes sense on so many levels for us and for them," Green said. "For us, if we're going to get to the future, we've got to start to embrace the younger guys, and that's what this really is.
"I think you'll start seeing some guys float through here, not just Trey today, but in short order, next week, we'll probably see some new guys in here having some rotation opportunities."