The Padres announced Thursday that theyve signed lefty to a one-year deal with a club option for the 2026 season. Hell be guaranteed $1.5MM, , coming in the form of a $1MM salary and a $500K buyout on a $5MM club option for the 2026 season. He can boost the value of that option to $7.5MM based on escalators tied to games started. According to , the option price would climb by $250K if Hart reaches 18 starts this year, $500K at 22 starts, $750K at 26 starts, and $1MM if he starts 30 games. Theres also a $250K a signment bonus in the event that hes traded, MLBTR has learned. Hart, a client of NPG Sports, enjoyed a breakout showing in the Korea Baseball Organization in 2024 and has drawn big league interest throughout the winter. Hes the second starter the Friars have added in as many days, as San Diego also with last night. Hart, who turned 32 in November, was torched for 19 runs in 11 innings with the 2020 Red Sox, his lone MLB experience to date. He has a fairly nondescript 4.36 ERA in 334 2/3 Triple-A frames as well, but a move overseas and some changes to his pitch repertoire unlocked new reason for optimism. Brandishing a new sweeper, a heavier reliance on his changeup and using his four-seamer more at the top of the zone in South Korea, Hart broke out with a 2.69 earned run average over 26 starts for the KBOs NC Dinos. He racked up 157 innings, fanned 28.8% of his opponents and i sued walks at a 6% clip. That performance earned him the Choi Dong-won Award the KBO equivalent of MLBs Cy Young Award. Hart now joins fellow newcomer Pivetta and holdovers , and in San Diegos David Savard Jersey rotation mix. He could have to compete with , and for that fifth spot behind the four established veterans, but Hart at the very least seems like the front-runner to land that job. Its always po sible that a trade changes the calculus, but the minimal 2025 commitments to Hart ($1.5MM), Pivetta ($4MM), ($1MM) and ($1MM) over the past week have addre sed several needs at bargain prices at least for this year. (Pivetta will earn $19MM in 2026, $14MM in 2027 and $18MM in 2028.) Both Cease and King have popped up on the rumor mill this winter Cease in particular but as of this morning the Padres are reportedly . That can be revisited at the deadline if the season doesnt play out as hoped. For the time being, the recent slate of cost-effective pickups seems to have filled various needs within the (very) tight confines of the payroll limitations president of baseball operations A.J. Preller has been navigating throughout the winter. The additions of Hart, Pivetta, Heyward and Joe over the past week have pushed San Diegos payroll to a projected $207MM, . Thats an increase of nearly $40MM over last seasons end-of-year mark. The Friars have a projected $259MM worth of CBT obligations as well, placing them a hefty $18MM over the $241MM luxury threshold. However, since they reset their penalty level when they ducked under the tax line in 2024, theyll be faced with only the minimum penalty: a 20% tax on their current overages. Thats about $3.6MM in penalties right now, and its po sible trades of players other than Cease/King could yet reduce the bill. The Padres have been open to offers on reliever , and theyd surely be open to offers on left-hander or infielder , too, if it meant shedding a notable chunk of either players contract. Patrick Roy Jersey