Alfonso Rivas

Rivas saw his first extended run in the majors in 2022, and he didn't fully capitalize on the opportunity. After appearing in 18 games in 2021, the infielder upped that to 101 games, and he slashed .235/.322/.307 across 251 at-bats. Rivas had a notable drop in batting average, falling from .318 to .235, and his OPS dropped from .797 to .629. The 26-year-old functioned as a platoon player, as he only saw 32 plate appearances against left-handed pitchers. The left-handed Rivas has historically struggled against southpaws, so the limited exposure made sense and is unlikely to change moving forward. The Cubs opted to move on from Rivas in December, and he joined the Padres on a minor-league deal a couple weeks later. He should serve as organizational depth for San Diego and is unlikely to crack the Opening Day roster.

Rivas moved from Oakland to Chicago in a January 2020 trade for Tony Kemp. Though he wasn't selected to train at the Cubs' alternate site, Rivas was part of the team's Arizona instructional league roster, and he reportedly performed well in that opportunity. The 24-year-old has a pretty left-handed swing that he has used to compile a .290 average across two minor-league seasons and is not shy about taking a walk, registering a 13.0 BB% over 800 plate appearances during that span. Rivas' hit tool could translate to big-league success, but his ability to stick in an everyday role could come down to his growth as a power hitter. Rivas has hit only 10 homers over 183 minor-league games, so he'll need to add some pop to earn everyday at-bats. His hitting profile has been compared to that of Mark Grace, which sounds great until you recall that Grace averaged only 11 homers over 16 big-league campaigns.

At 6-foot, 188 pounds, Rivas lacks typical size for first base and will be heading to Double-A for his age-23 season, but he has been a high-level performer thus far. The reason he fell to the A's in the fourth round of the 2018 draft was that many evaluators questioned whether he could hit for enough power to profile at first base. That question remains, and the answer will determine whether or not he matters in fantasy. His plate skills (13.0 BB%) and all-fields approach bode well for his ability to have relative success at Double-A and Triple-A. He hit .260/.355/.327 against lefties, so he could be platooned in the majors. Rivas slashed .311/.429/.467 in the Arizona Fall League, but his 28.6 K% was easily his worst mark in pro ball. He has some experience in left field, so he would debut there if he remains with Oakland, as he is obviously not displacing Matt Olson.