The Padres have released right-handers J.P. France and José Leclerc, per the MiLB.com transaction log. Both had been with the organization on minor league contracts.
France (no relation to San Diego first baseman Ty France) signed his minor league deal in early August after being cut loose by the Astros. The 31-year-old has pitched 10 2/3 innings with the Friars’ top affiliate in El Paso but been rocked for 10 runs on 19 hits and eight walks with nine strikeouts in that time. The Padres were in need of more pitching depth at the time of his signing but followed with deadline-day acquisitions of veteran starters Robbie Ray and Casey Mize. The Padres also welcomed Nick Pivetta back from the injured list this weekend, further strengthening their staff.
Prior to his brief stint in the Padres organization, France had spent his entire career in the Astros organization. The former 14th-round pick (2018) wasn’t regarded as a high-end prospect when he rose to the majors in 2023, but France proved to be something of a season-saver that year as Houston was hammered by injuries in the rotation. Luis Garcia, Lance McCullers Jr. and José Urquidy all fell early to injury, while Cristian Javier hit a wall midseason and struggled for much of the summer.
France, who entered the season ranked by Baseball America as the No. 21 prospect in a weak Astros farm, came up from Triple-A and delivered 136 1/3 innings of 3.83 ERA ball out of the rotation. His well below-average strikeout rate and susceptibility to home runs always made that level of run-prevention look a bit dubious, but France’s contributions that year kept the club afloat amid injuries and seemed to set the stage for him to operate as a fourth or fifth starter in subsequent seasons.
Shoulder troubles intervened. France battled shoulder issues throughout the 2024 season before eventually undergoing surgery to repair a capsule tear. He missed nearly all of the 2024-25 seasons as a result of the injury. France has pitched just 114 total innings (36 in the majors) since that impressive rookie showing. He’s been working primarily in relief this year, but his velocity is still down nearly a mile per hour from its 2023 level despite working shorter stints. France would’ve been able to reach minor league free agency at season’s end anyhow, but he’ll get there a bit sooner now.
Leclerc, 33 in December, signed a minor league pact with San Diego back in March. He was hoping for a bounceback season after missing the majority of the 2025 campaign due to a lat strain that eventually required surgery.
Leclerc was with the A’s at the time of that injury and surgery. He’s signed a one-year, $10MM contract as the Athletics were under scrutiny pertaining to the usage (or lack thereof) of their revenue-sharing funds. He wound up pitching only nine innings, and this year’s rebound effort didn’t pan out. The former Rangers setup man and closer pitched 24 1/3 innings across four minor league levels in the Padres’ system but finishes up with a 7.77 ERA. That includes a brutal 11.74 mark in Triple-A (10 runs, 7 2/3 innings), where he walked twice as many batters as he struck out (eight to four). His four-seam fastball, which average 96.8 mph at its peak, sat at just 93.3 mph in El Paso this year.
Both veterans could look for new opportunities this winter in free agency with an eye toward a 2027 rebound, although the ’23 season stands as the most recent productive year for either right-hander.
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