Scouting Report

Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 45 | Overall: 40

After starring in high school outside of Rochester, N.Y., Salina headed south to George Mason University for college ball. After a freshman year pitching sparingly out of the Patriots' bullpen, he moved closer to home, staying in the Atlantic 10 Conference to attend St. Bonaventure. He spent his sophomore year in the rotation and was off to a solid start as the Bonnies’ No. 1 starter this year when an elbow injury shelved him after four starts, and he had Tommy John surgery in April. The Padres took him in the fourth round and signed him for slot at $571,500.

A 6-foot-1 right-hander, Salina has electric stuff when he’s healthy. He’s gained some ticks of velocity in his fastball from earlier in his college career and was averaging close to 95 mph with it, while touching 98 routinely and topping out at 102. The pitch misses bats thanks to excellent extension. So does his mid-80s slider, which is short and hard with two-plane break. He doesn’t go to his changeup often, but he has feel for the upper-80s cambio.

While he’s strong and compact, Salina is a sneaky good athlete and does a decent job of repeating his simple, from-the-stretch delivery. He found the zone a lot in his first four starts, and the Padres believe he could come back even stronger after taking the year off to rehab before his pro debut at some point in the first half of 2026.

Video scouting report »

Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 45 | Overall: 40

After starring in high school outside of Rochester, N.Y., Salina headed south to George Mason University for college ball. After a freshman year pitching sparingly out of the Patriots' bullpen, he moved closer to home, staying in the Atlantic 10 Conference to attend St. Bonaventure. He spent his sophomore year in the rotation and was off to a solid start as the Bonnies’ No. 1 starter this year when an elbow injury shelved him after four starts; he had Tommy John surgery in April.

A 6-foot-1 right-hander, Salina has electric stuff when he’s healthy. He’s gained some ticks of velocity in his fastball from earlier in his college career and was averaging close to 95 mph with it, while touching 98 routinely and topping out at 102. The pitch misses bats thanks to excellent extension. So does his mid-80s slider, which is short and hard with two-plane break. He doesn’t go to his changeup often, but he has feel for the upper-80s cambio.

While he’s strong and compact, Salina is a sneaky good athlete and does a decent job of repeating his simple, from-the-stretch delivery. He found the zone a lot in his first four starts and now teams will have to decide if they want to take him and let him rehab in their system.

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	08/04/2025	ACL Padres activated RHP Michael Salina.
	07/24/2025	RHP Michael Salina assigned to ACL Padres.
	07/24/2025	San Diego Padres signed RHP Michael Salina.
	06/03/2025	RHP Michael Salina assigned to College Workout.
	06/26/2024	Brewster Whitecaps released RHP Michael Salina.
	04/02/2024	RHP Michael Salina assigned to Brewster Whitecaps.