The San Diego Padres hired away High-A Asheville pitching coach Jose Rada in November, a source told Astros Future on Thursday. Rada, who joined the Houston Astros organization in 2016, is now the Padres minor league pitching coordinator.
Rada played six minor league seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals, stretching from 2006-2011. A right-handed relief pitcher, Rada posted a 4.23 ERA in 247 innings pitched, reaching Double-A Springfield in his last minor league season.
Battling an injury at the backend of his career, Rada attempted a comeback in the winter of 2014-15 for the Tigres de Aragua of the Venezuelan Winter League, where he’d spent four offseasons prior.
Rada took one last go on the professional circuit in 2015 with the Lake Erie Crushers, but in his age-27 season, he only appeared in one game. Closing his playing career, Rada stuck to the sport, joining Houston in 2016 as a coach in the Dominican Summer League.
The Venezuelan native was the pitching coach this winter for the Cangrejeros de Santurce of the Puerto Rican Winter League, while High-A Asheville hitting coach Rene Rojas also joined him on staff.
The Cagrejeros were managed by Astros hitting coach Alex Cintrón to start the 2022-23 season, before Cintrón left the club 18 games into the regular season. Rada also left Santurce before the completion of the season, following his contract signing with San Diego.
But Rada and other personnel weren’t the only Astros down in Puerto Rico this winter. Double-A reliever Derek West and Triple-A outfielder and second baseman Pedro León are both rostered by Santurce.
“I guess you can kind of just say it’s a feeder team,” West said. “There’s a lot of Astros guys down here.”
Former Astros reliever Andre Scrubb joined the Cangrejeros this week, he confirmed to Astros Future on Thursday. With his Dominican Winter League club, the Toros del Este, not making the playoffs, Scrubb looked to continue his offseason in Puerto Rico in pursuit of another professional contract.
Scrubb’s velocity is back up after an injury sidelined him for almost all of the 2022 season. He made his first appearance Wednesday night, with West describing Scrubb’s curveball, in a lone inning of work, as “gross.”
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