A member of the San Diego Padres’ player development staff has been detained by federal immigration authorities after he was taken into custody at an airport in Texas while returning home from a work trip.
Oswaldo Pirela, the Padres’ 34-year-old minor league catching coordinator, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at El Paso International Airport early Sunday morning. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed the detention Tuesday and said Pirela remains in federal custody.
Pirela, a Venezuelan national, had been in El Paso for work with the Padres organization. San Diego’s Triple-A affiliate, the El Paso Chihuahuas, is based in the city. Pirela was attempting to fly back to Arizona, where he lives with his wife and two daughters, when immigration authorities detained him.
“We recently became aware of the detainment of minor league catching coordinator Oswaldo Pirela in El Paso, Texas,” the Padres said in a statement. “We are working to gather additional information and will not have any further comment at this time.”
Pirela’s immigration status is now at the center of the case. His family says he came to the United States from Venezuela in 2014 and sought asylum. His wife, Kemberly Avila, told The Athletic that Pirela and members of his family have pending asylum applications and carry temporary identification cards. His brother, Jorge Pirela, said Pirela was not carrying his physical work permit card when he was detained at the airport.
The Department of Homeland Security offered a different assessment of his current legal status. According to a DHS statement reported by ESPN, Pirela entered the United States legally in 2014, but that authorization expired in 2018. The agency said he “was not in possession of legal documentation granting him status in the country.”
DHS said Pirela will remain in ICE custody while removal proceedings move forward. His family, however, maintains that he has continued going through the immigration system and has repeatedly renewed his authorization to work in the United States while pursuing legal status. The family is also reportedly pursuing an EB-2 employment-based visa on his behalf.
Pirela has deep ties to professional baseball. Before moving into coaching and player development, he spent time as a player in the Texas Rangers’ minor league system. He later joined the Padres organization in 2024 and currently serves as its minor league catching coordinator, working with players throughout the club’s farm system.
His family said the Padres have been helping them navigate the situation. Avila has also been able to communicate with her husband since he was taken into custody. Pirela’s relatives have publicly emphasized his role as a father and coach while seeking a path to secure his release.
The detention comes as the Trump administration continues its immigration enforcement push across the country. The administration has made arrests, detention and deportation of individuals without legal immigration status a major priority, while immigration cases involving pending asylum claims have drawn additional attention.
For now, Pirela remains in ICE custody as his immigration case proceeds. Neither the Padres nor Major League Baseball has announced whether the situation will affect his position with the organization, and a timeline for the next step in his immigration proceedings has not been made public.
