Scouting Report

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Scouting grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 50 | Run: 40 | Arm: 60 | Field: 50 | Overall: 40

The crop of talent coming out of Puerto Rico this year is a little light, with Gonzalez the best of the class despite not having been scouted a ton as he was working his way back from a knee injury. There hasn’t been a catcher taken from Puerto Rico in the top 10 rounds since the A’s took Santis Sanchez in the sixth round back in 2017, also the last time a player from the island was a first-rounder (Heliot Ramos). Gonzalez has the chance to break the backstop drought, helping himself by getting more exposure at the Draft Combine in June.

Gonzalez checks off one box organizations love: He’s a left-handed hitting catcher. While he’s not been tested that much against top competition, he has shown off considerable raw power, particularly to the pull side, and registered an above-average volume of exit velocities over 96 mph at the Combine.

He also has the chance to be an excellent defender in time. He has plus arm strength, though he can get a little long in back, and has the blocking and receiving skills to stick back there, even if it will take a little bit of extra development. Committed to Indiana State, Gonzalez could be an intriguing Day 2 steal who has flown under the radar because of the time he missed this spring.

Scouting grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 50 | Run: 40 | Arm: 70 | Field: 50 | Overall: 40

Gonzalez was working his way back from a knee injury in the spring, but despite not being scouted much, he still looked like the best Draft prospect out of Puerto Rico in the 2023 class. That status was cemented when he headed to the Draft Combine in June, and by Draft day, he'd established himself as MLB Pipeline’s No. 213 prospect in the class. The Padres liked him even more than that, selecting him in the third round and signing him for $550,000. Gonzalez became the first Puerto Rican catcher selected in the first 10 rounds since 2017 (Santis Sanchez, A’s). He opened with Single-A Lake Elsinore in 2024 and was traded to the Rays at the Deadline as part of a three-player return for reliever Jason Adam.

There are plenty of interesting parts of Gonzalez’s profile, starting with his status as a left-handed-hitting backstop. The Combine was the perfect place for him to show above-average raw power with a steady rate of exit velocities above 96 mph, and there’s a chance he could add even more pull-side pop in pro ball.

The biggest raves he earns are reserved for his arm strength, with one evaluator noting he has a “bazooka” behind the dish. His blocking and receiving skills could end up being solid with professional work, and therein lies the rub. Having only turned 18 in October of his Draft year, Gonzalez faces a potentially long developmental path, and the history of prep catchers isn’t terrific across the game. But the building blocks, in this case, are worthy of some early excitement and intrigue, and that’s what the Rays were buying into with this acquisition.

Scouting grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 50 | Run: 40 | Arm: 60 | Field: 50 | Overall: 40

The crop of talent coming out of Puerto Rico this year was a little light, with Gonzalez the best of the class despite not having been scouted a ton as he was working his way back from a knee injury. There wasn't a catcher taken directly from Puerto Rico in the top 10 rounds since the A's took Santis Sanchez in the fifth round in 2017, also the last time a player from the island was a first-rounder (Heliot Ramos). Gonzalez broke that drought when he went in the third round to San Diego after helping himself by getting more exposure at the Draft Combine in June. He signed below slot at $550,000.

Gonzalez checks off one box organizations love: He's a left-handed-hitting catcher. While he's not been tested that much against top competition, he has shown off considerable raw power, particularly to the pull side, and registered an above-average volume of exit velocities over 96 mph at the Combine.

He also has the chance to be an excellent defender in time. He has plus arm strength, though he can get a little long in back, and has the blocking and receiving skills to stick back there, even if it will take a little bit of extra development. The Padres have shown a knack for developing backstops with Ethan Salas, Brandon Valenzuela and Lamar King Jr. taking nice steps forward in 2023, so there's hope Gonzalez could follow.

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	07/28/2024	Tampa Bay Rays traded RHP Jason Adam to San Diego Padres for RHP Dylan Lesko, OF Homer Bush Jr. and C J.D. Gonzalez.
	07/28/2024	C J.D. Gonzalez assigned to Charleston RiverDogs.
	07/28/2024	C J.D. Gonzalez roster status changed by Tampa Bay Rays.
	04/23/2024	C J.D. Gonzalez assigned to Lake Elsinore Storm from ACL Padres.
	04/23/2024	Lake Elsinore Storm activated C J.D. Gonzalez.
	03/07/2024	San Diego Padres Prospects activated C J.D. Gonzalez.
	11/26/2023	C J.D. Gonzalez assigned to Gigantes de Carolina.
	11/05/2023	ACL Padres activated C J.D. Gonzalez from the 60-day injured list.
	07/23/2023
	07/20/2023	San Diego Padres signed C J.D. Gonzalez.
	06/06/2023	C JD Gonzalez assigned to College Workout.
	07/14/2022	High School Workout activated C JD Gonzalez.
	07/14/2022	C Jandaniel Gonzalez and assigned to High School Workout.
	07/14/2022	High School Workout activated C Jandaniel Gonzalez.