The Padres purchased Ornelas' contract for $1.5 million in March 2017 after his time with Diablos Rojos del Mexico in Mexico City. He moved methodically through the system with solid but not stellar results and was left unprotected and unpicked in the Rule 5 Draft three times after first becoming eligible in 2021. Playing for Triple-A El Paso for a third straight season in 2024, he had his best year yet with a .297/.367/.497 line and career-high 23 homers (10th-most in the Pacific Coast League) in 128 games. He was added to the 40-man roster in July as outfield depth but never debuted and continued to produce in winter ball back home in Mexico.
The left-handed slugger’s increased power output in ’24 wasn’t just a product of the hitter-friendly environs of El Paso or the PCL as a whole. His exit velocities ran above average, including his 104.8 mph 90th-percentile EV. It’s all-fields pop too, but what keeps Ornelas, who bats from an open stance with a leg kick, from a true 55-grade pop projection is that he still hits the ball on the ground more than is desired. Otherwise, he doesn’t whiff on many pitches across the board and had almost even splits, though he will expand the zone in search of contact.
Ornelas is a below-average runner, and his average arm strength meant he got the lion’s share of work in left field in 2024. He also sprinkled in some first base in August and September, notably after the 40-man add. San Diego has an opening in left entering 2025 with free-agent additions Jason Heyward and Connor Joe also expected to compete for the role. Ornelas could at least be in position to provide a lefty bat off the bench soon.
A product of Diablos Rojos del Mexico in Mexico City, Ornelas moved to the Padres for $1.5 million as part of the organization’s 2016-17 international class, and he’s been a solid but not stellar performer ever since, resulting in three straight non-protections from the Rule 5 Draft when eligible. The outfielder most recently split his age-23 season between Double-A San Antonio and Triple-A El Paso in 2023, slashing .285/.371/.452 with a career-high 15 homers over 127 games.
The left-handed slugger exhibits promising raw power. He had a 114.0 mph max exit velocity for El Paso -- only the rehabbing Fernando Tatis Jr. posted an EV higher than that for the Chihuahuas in ’23 -- and his 104.3 90th-percentile EV was fifth-best on the club (min. 200 PA). That improving strength led to the heightened homer total, but Ornelas, who begins from an open stance before starting his swing with a leg kick, still hits the ball on the ground too much to project for better-than-average in-game pop. While Ornelas has kept his strikeouts in check in recent years, he might struggle against better breaking stuff after both chasing and whiffing on sliders at the upper levels.
A touch-below-average runner, the 6-foot-2 prospect has been delegated to corner-outfield duty the higher he climbs, and he might be a better fit in left than right due to average arm strength. He’ll factor into San Diego’s depth on the grass this summer but doesn’t figure to be more than a fourth outfielder who can provide lefty thump off the bench.
The Padres have a history of adding talent from Diablos Rojos del Mexico in Mexico City, including Major Leaguers Luis Urías and Andrés Muñoz and another prospect in Rosman Verdugo. Ornelas continued that tradition when he entered the San Diego system as a 17-year-old in March 2017, and while his performance hasn’t necessarily been stellar anywhere just yet, he has been pushed fairly aggressively throughout his career, including when he played 112 games at Double-A as a 22-year-old in 2022. He slashed .288/.355/.408 with seven homers and seven steals in 112 games with San Antonio before getting a late cup of coffee at Triple-A and a 16-game trip to the Arizona Fall League.
Perhaps the most important development of Ornelas’ 2022 regular season was the fact that he cut his strikeout rate from 22 percent in 2021 to 17.2 last year. That helped his Double-A average jump more than 30 points higher than his career mark, and it helps in the belief that his bat could be close to Major League average in time. That said, while he does show at least average raw power, it doesn't translate into games, with the biggest culprit being a ground-ball rate hovering around 50 percent.
Ornelas needs to hit, though, because he’s become a full-time corner outfielder, due to his fringy speed. He’ll need to prioritize adding some loft to his left-handed swing in the upper Minors, because while he has been young for most levels, he’s also been left off the 40-man roster two years in a row when Rule 5-eligible.
Signed in 2016 from the same Mexico City Red Devils team that produced Major Leaguers Luis Urias and Andres Munoz, Ornelas quickly emerged as one of the Padres’ highest-ceiling prospects, pairing a knack for reaching base with a physical build expected to produce power. But Ornelas took a step back in 2019, when he slashed just .220/.309/.292 at Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore. His numbers improved last season as he hit .248/.344/.389 over 107 games at High-A, though there’s still work to be done.
Ornelas made some adjustments to his swing prior to last season. He has a smooth left-handed stroke, but lacks bat speed and doesn’t get to his power consistently in games. He also has a tendency to sell out a bit to get to that power, which exposes other holes in his swing. When everything is clicking, he shows a solid approach, a willingness to take a walk and the ability to spray the ball all over the field.
Ornelas played some center field at the lower levels, but has since moved to the corners as he lacks the speed to stick in center. However, it’s the bat that will determine his career path and if he’s able to start hitting for power more consistently, he could transition into a fourth-outfield type.
Signed in 2016 from the same Mexico City Red Devils team that produced Luis Urías and Andrés Muñoz, Ornelas emerged as one of the organization’s highest-ceiling prospects, pairing a knack for reaching base with a physical build that might produce some power. But Ornelas took an undoubted step back in 2019, when he slashed just .220/.309/.292 at Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore. He appeared to be making strides in the 2020-21 offseason while playing in Mexico before he broke a bone in his forearm and needed surgery.
Ornelas started in early May with High-A Fort Wayne, but has been a little below-average with the bat at that level. Prior to the season, the Padres and Ornelas underwent a series of adjustments to his swing, in an effort to make the most out of his excellent hitting tools. He owns a fluid but explosive left-handed stroke that could translate to above-average power eventually. He also has a penchant for recognizing pitches and a willingness to take a walk.
Ornelas has played some center field at the lower levels, but he's been moved to right in 2021. He's a fringe-average runner and could lose a step with physical development. That likely will keep Ornelas in a corner, and he'll need to start producing more than he has in 2021 to make the most of that new profile.
Signed from the same Mexico City Red Devils team that produced Luis Urias and Andres Munoz, Ornelas had his contract purchased for $1.5 million by the Padres in 2016. He emerged as one of the organization’s highest-ceiling prospects, pairing a knack for reaching base with a physical build that might one day produce some power. But Ornelas took an undoubted step back in 2019. He slashed just .220/.309/.292 at Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore.
Then again, Ornelas was just a 19-year-old playing the California League, so he has plenty of time to bounce back. At 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, Ornelas shows flashes of an impact player with his size, athleticism and array of tools. He's a very advanced hitter with a fluid but explosive left-handed swing. It could translate to above-average power as Ornelas grows into his projectable frame and learns to hit the ball in the air. He hasn't quite tapped into that raw power yet, but he has a knack for recognizing pitches and a willingness to take a walk.
Ornelas has played some center field at the lower levels, but he's unlikely to stay there. He's a fringe-average runner and could lose a step with physical development. That likely will push Ornelas to either right or left field, where his offensive profile and above-average arm strength are clean fits.
These run values are leveraged, meaning the base/out situation at the time of the event does impact the run value (thus introducing context outside the batter's own contribution).
Note: xHR tells how many of this player's home runs would have been out of other stadiums. The "Adjusted" view here accounts for different wall heights, distances and environmental effects using Statcast Park Factor data.
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Player
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0
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Note: xHR tells how many of this player's home runs would have been out of other stadiums. The "Standard" view here accounts for different wall heights and distances but excludes environmental effects. It is based purely on the observed trajectory of the hit.
! Note: Shifts are through the 2022 season, Shaded starting from the 2023 season, Shift: three or more infielders are on the same side of second base, Shade: positioned outside of their typical responsible slices of the field. Learn more about how positioning is defined here
