Padres recall Francisco Mejia from Triple-A El Paso

The San Diego Padres recalled prized prospect Francisco Mejia from Triple-A El Paso on Tuesday.

The San Diego Padres recalled prized prospect Francisco Mejia from Triple-A El Paso on Tuesday.

Mejia is rated as the top catching prospect in the majors by MLB Pipeline.

The 22-year-old Mejia was obtained via a heavy price from the Cleveland Indians in late July -- two-time All-Star left-hander Brad Hand and right-handed reliever Adam Cimber.

Mejia batted .328 with seven homers and 23 RBIs in 31 games at El Paso, and now the Padres are ready to take a closer look.

Of course, the Padres possess a starting catcher in Austin Hedges, who is batting .239 with 11 homers and 32 RBIs in 74 games.

"There's room for two back there to be a great baseball team," Padres manager Andy Green told reporters. "You're probably looking at split time through the month of September."

The Padres didn't play Mejia solely behind the plate at El Paso. They see his versatility being an asset as they sort out the catching situation.

"His catching became second fiddle to his ability to play left field," Green said. "We're not looking to do that with him at this point in time. That doesn't mean that in the future we won't ask him to bounce around the field. That might happen."

Mejia played in 12 big league games with the Indians over the past two seasons, going 2-for-15 with one RBI.

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