Princeton catcher Jake Bold signs with hometown San Diego Padres

After three standout years with the Princeton baseball team, catcher Jake Bold ’26 is heading back home to San Diego. Bold agreed to a minor-league contract with the San Diego Padres on Tuesday, setting him up to join a farm system that has produced a series of high-level hitters in recent years. His departure — alongside that of Sean Episcope ’27, who was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers — will leave a significant hole in the middle of the Tigers’ lineup.

“It was a dream come true to sign with my hometown team and I am grateful to the Padres organization for giving me a chance,” Bold told The Daily Princetonian after reaching a deal with San Diego.

Princeton’s last baseball alum to reach the majors was Mike Ford ’14, who got the call-up to play for the New York Yankees in 2019 after over six years in the minors.

Bold has been an elite hitter across his three years with the Tigers, consistently leading the team in a number of important statistics. After earning a starting role in his first year, the catcher never looked back, starting every game through his sophomore and junior seasons. He had a remarkable eye at the plate, leading the team in walks in 2024 before outdoing himself and drawing the second-most walks in a single season in program history in 2025.

This knack for drawing walks allowed Bold to lead the team in on-base percentage (OBP) the past two seasons, and paced the squad in slugging in 2025 as well. His career on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) stands at an elite .882, the career best of any current Tiger. Though he was never a particularly outstanding home run hitter, he came into his own in that right last season, mashing eight home runs in a number of big spots for the team.

After the conclusion of his junior year, Bold joined the Cape Cod Baseball League, a summer league for college and unaffiliated baseball players that has produced a number of MLB stars over its history. With the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, he maintained his elite on-base skills with a .382 OBP while also flashing his defensive prowess, throwing out 31 percent of baserunners from behind the plate. Bold was released on July 15 in order to sign his professional contract.

“The Cape was an awesome experience,” Bold told the ‘Prince.’ “The fanfare and amount of press at each game was crazy considering we played on high school fields, and the type of competition was unmatched. Bummer I couldn’t stay for longer but it was a lot of fun.”

Although his name was not called during the 2025 MLB draft this week, Bold nonetheless found a big-league home with the Padres after the draft concluded. The signing is a homecoming of sorts for the catcher, who attended La Jolla Country Day School, just a 20-minute drive from the Padres’ home at Petco Park. Bold will join a farm system in sore need of talent, currently ranked 25th in the most recent MLB Pipeline list.

“A few teams had me work out for them before the draft, so I was following the draft when the Padres called me in the middle of it and asked if I would agree to a deal after the draft,” Bold recalled. “Once they gave me that opportunity, that was my number one priority.”

Joe Uglialoro is an assistant Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’

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