The San Diego Padres' 2026 season is officially in the rearview mirror. The Padres now shift their focus to 2027, where their goal is simple: win the first World Series in franchise history.

The Padres need to make tons of improvements this offseason to make that happen, as they potentially have 17 free agents . While San Diego will look to upgrade its roster through outside additions, internal development will be just as important, too, especially when it comes to catcher Ethan Salas.

Salas got his first taste of postseason baseball in October and, at just 20 years old, still has plenty of adjustments to make as he continues his development.

All signs point to Salas being the catcher of the present and future, but president of baseball operations AJ Preller isn't ready to crown him the starter just yet.

Padres Plan to Have Competition at Catcher for 2027

In his end-of-season press conference, Preller would only go as far to say that Salas would be in the mix to be the starting catcher next year.

“I…