Nicholas Padilla

Nicholas Padilla (born December 24, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Chicago White Sox organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs. He plays for the Puerto Rico national baseball team.

Career
Padilla attended Cardinal Spellman High School in the Bronx, New York, and Grayson College.

Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays in the 13th round of the 2015 MLB draft. He made his professional debut in 2016, starting 8 games for the rookie-level Gulf Coast Rays. In 2017. Padilla spent the year with the Low-A Hudson Valley Renegades, pitching to a 3-2 record and 2.38 ERA with 29 strikeouts in 34.0 innings of work across 11 games (7 starts).

He spent the 2018 season split between Hudson Valley and the Single-A Bowling Green Hot Rods, registering a 4-7 record and 4.04 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 69.0 innings pitched. In 2019, Padilla spent the year with Bowling Green, logging a 7-2 record and 3.48 ERA with 76 strikeouts and 2 saves in 62.0 innings pitched. He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chicago Cubs
On December 10, 2020, the Chicago Cubs selected Padilla in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft. He spent the 2021 season with the High-A South Bend Cubs, struggling to a 16.20 ERA in 2 appearances and missing the majority of the year due to injury. He spent time with three Cubs affiliates prior to his promotion in 2022, posting excellent results with South Bend, the Double-A Tennessee Smokies, and the Triple-A Iowa Cubs.

On August 23, 2022, Padilla was selected to the 40-man roster and promoted up to the majors for the first time. He made his major league debut that day against the St. Louis Cardinals, allowing a run in 1.2 innings pitched while recording his first career strikeout against eventual National League MVP Paul Goldschmidt. On September 6, Padilla was designated for assignment by the Cubs.

Chicago White Sox
On September 9, 2022, Padilla was claimed off waivers by the Chicago White Sox. He made seven appearances for the Triple-A Charlotte Knights to close out the year, posting a 3.00 ERA with six strikeouts in six innings pitched.

Padilla was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte to begin the 2023 season. In 3 appearances for Chicago, he recorded a 5.79 ERA with 6 strikeouts across $4 2⁄3$ innings of work. Following the season on November 30, Padilla was removed from the roster and sent outright to Triple–A Charlotte.

International career
Padilla played for the Puerto Rico national baseball team at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.