has exercised the $5.5MM player option in his contract with the Padres, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 ( ). Hell play out the second season of a two-year, $12MM guarantee. Triggering the option was likely an easy call for the left-handed hitter. Carpenter had a tough 2023 campaign, hitting .176/.322/.319 with five home runs through 276 trips to the plate. He seemed to fall out of favor with the coaching staff as a result, often going extended stretches without an at-bat. His season ended in mid-September when he landed on the injured list with right elbow inflammation. Clearly, that wasnt what the front office envisioned when signing Carpenter a year ago. The longtime Cardinals second baseman had struggled mightily from 2020-21. When a minor league deal with the Rangers didnt Josh Reaves Jersey result in a big league opportunity, he considered retirement. Yet he absolutely raked over 47 games when he got a look from the Yankees in May 2022. Carpenter blasted 15 homers in 154 plate appearances, hitting .305/.412/.727. A foot fracture kept his time as a Yankee rather brief, leaving the Padres to gamble on him maintaining some kind of strong offensive form after that relatively small-sample performance. It didnt happen in year one. The Padres could give Carpenter another crack at securing a job on the bench, although it doesnt seem guaranteed hell spend the entire offseason on the 40-man roster. In any event, he is a sured of next years salary. With making the similarly easy call to his option yesterday, the Padres are down to their two more borderline options on right-handers and . Courtney Lee Jersey