The Padres announced Friday that theyve claimed right-hander off waivers from the White Sox, whod designated him for a signment earlier in the week. Its a homecoming for Patio, a former top prospect who was originally signed and developed by the Padres. Their 40-man roster is now up to 33 players. Now 24 years old, Patio was traded from San Diego to Tampa Bay alongside catcher , minor league catcher and minor league righty in the 2020 trade that brought eventual two-time Cy Young winner to the Padres. At the time of the swap, Patio was regarded as one of the sports very best pitching prospects; hed scuffled through 17 1/3 innings in his initial call to the Majors the prior Carlos Beltran Jersey season (5.19 ERA, 21-to-14 K/BB ratio), but that debut came at just 20 years of age. Entering the 2020 campaign, each of Baseball America, MLB.com, Baseball Prospectus, FanGraphs, ESPN and The Athletic had ranked among the top 30 prospects in all of MLB. As is made clear by the manner in which hes returning to the Friars, things havent panned out for Patio. The right-hander posted strong numbers in 29 1/3 Triple-A frames in 2021 and also spent the majority of that season on the big league roster in Tampa Bay. It wasnt a great season by any means, but Patio did post a 4.31 ERA with a 22.2% strikeout rate and 8.7% walk rate while averaging 96 mph on his heater. For a 21-year-old in his first full MLB campaign and one whod barely pitched above A-ball thanks to the canceled 2020 minor league season it was a reasonably encouraging first foot forward. From there, however, things went downhill quickly. Patio suffered a severe oblique strain early in the 2022 campaign, prompting a 60-day IL placement and an absence of more than three months. Upon returning, he showed diminished velocity and far shakier results. Patio walked more batters than he struck out in 20 MLB frames that year and was limited to 34 Triple-A innings, where he struggled with home runs and was tagged for a 4.50 earned run average. In 2023, Patio developed alarming command troubles, walking more nearly 18% of the opponents he faced in Triple-A between the Rays and the White Sox, who acquired him for cash considerations on the day of the trade deadline. In 21 1/3 innings at the MLB level, Patio posted a 4.57 ERA with an 18.2% strikeout rate and 14.1% walk rate. Hell now head back to a Padres club thats in need of pitching depth after seeing starters Snell, , and reach free agency in addition to relievers , and . Clearly, Patio cant be counted on like the Padres might have expected in 2021, had he not been traded, but he gives them a still-young arm to plug into the rotation mix or bullpen this spring. Patio is out of minor league options, it should be noted, meaning hell have to either make the Opening Day roster or else be traded or placed on waivers once again. Vinnie Pasquantino Jersey