Biggest Offseason Additions
Josh Johnson: Johnson had one of the worst seasons any starting pitcher has ever had over the last 10 seasons, 2-8 with a 6.20 ERA in 16 starts for the Toronto Blue Jays, as his year was hampered by injuries. On the bright side, the Johnson American League experiment only lasted one season, and Johnson is back in the National League where he proved to be a top tier pitcher for the Florida/Miami Marlins for eight years. Padres’ General Manager Josh Byrnes has primarily focused on retooling the pitching staff this offseason and the Johnson deal may turn out to be the crown jewel. The deal is for one year at $8 million, but in a sense it’s really a “no pressure” situation for the soon-to-be 30-year-old. Expectations were brutal in Toronto in 2013, but now Johnson is back in the familiar, so to speak, as San Diego is only an hour away from where his wife Heidi grew up in Covina, California. Getting Johnson back in an environment where he’ll be surrounded by supportive friends and family may be what he needs to get back to the 56-37 with a 3.15 ERA and 832 strikeouts form he was in with the Marlins.
Seth Smith: This deal will come up again in a moment, but the Padres scored big time when they were able to acquire Smith from the Oakland Athletics. Smith had two decent years with the Athletics but never got the playing time that he deserved with the likes of Yoenis Cespedes, Coco Crisp and Josh Reddick as the consistent starting crew in the outfield. Even though Smith was used often as a designated hitter, he found his at-bats cut short by the emergence of Brandon Moss in early 2012. But even as decent of a pickup Smith was to the Athletics, he never quite matched up to the form that he displayed from 2007 to 2011 with the Colorado Rockies. In Smith’s two seasons with the Athletics he maintained a .246 average with only 22 home runs and 92 RBI in a total of 242 games. With the Rockies Smith was cleaning up with a .275 average, 51 home runs and 181 RBI in 487 total games. What’s most intriguing is that Smith never lost a beat when he moved to the AL as he hit .310 against the NL West during interleague matchups over his two seasons with the Athletics. In short, the Padres were able to trade for a guy who has hit more consistently against their divisional rivals than the guys they already have in place. Bold!
Biggest Offseason Loss
Luke Gregerson: The unfortunate reality for the Padres is that even though they scored with Smith, they lost hard by dealing one of their best bullpen arms to seal the deal. Gregerson has pitched for five seasons in the Majors, all with the Padres, and amassed a 17-22 record with a 2.88 ERA and 352 strikeouts in 347 innings of work. While his win/loss numbers seem a bit rough, you have to take into consideration that he was thrown into a lot of games early in relief on top of being the most-used pitcher on the club at 73 appearances in 2013, 77 appearances in 2012 and 80 appearances in 2010. Even at that, Gregerson has maintained an incredible 1.092 WHIP throughout his career which will certainly be a welcomed addition to the Athletics bullpen which has since retained the title of the “best bullpen in the Majors” even before pitchers and catchers have reported. While the Padres still have the arms of Nick Vincent and David Thayer to pick up the pieces, they unfortunately don’t have their third-best arm to Gregerson, Joe Thatcher, anymore after they dealt him to the Arizona Diamondbacks near the trade deadline for starting pitcher Ian Kennedy. So while it’s great that the Padres have boosted their starting rotation and added a few bats to their lineup, they still need to work on replenishing their bullpen… or just hope their starters can go at least eight innings every outing.
Name to Watch in Spring Training: Everth Cabrera
There is little-to-no doubt that all eyes will be on Cabrera this Spring Training as he was one of the 13 players who took a 50-game suspension for his implication in the Biogenesis scandal that rocked the Majors shortly after the All-Star break. Cabrera, in his fifth official season in the Majors, was having a career year, hitting a team-leading .283 with 37 stolen bases to boot in 95 games. Prior to his 2013 numbers the shortstop’s best-hitting season was in 2009, his rookie season, when he hit .255 with 25 stolen bases in 105 games to finish in eighth place for the NL Rookie of the Year Award. While Cabrera never officially tested positive for PEDs, it’s hard to shake the fact that his numbers improved so rapidly as he was hitting .246 with a league-leading 44 stolen bases in 2012. Cabrera has always had the speed on the base paths, but it’s hard not to question a guy who improves his batting average by just shy of 40 points from one season to the next, especially when their numbers are near league averages to begin with. Cabrera is a vital member of the club, but it will certainly be interesting to see what he’s able to do with his bat in 2014.
Biggest Spring Training Battle: Huston Street against Joaquin Benoit
It’s hard to recall a point in time when the Padres have ever been known to make controversial moves outside of trading away Ozzie Smith to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1981 or drafting shortstop Matt Bush with the number one overall pick in the 2004 MLB draft (Justin Verlander was number two), but they certainly threw seven different kinds of smoke when they signed Benoit to a two-year $14 million deal right after Christmas. The deal proved to be especially odd on the basis that Benoit had a decent year with 24 saves and a 2.01 ERA in his first season as the Detroit Tigers’ official closer, but Street finished with 33 saves and a 2.70 ERA even though his team fell short of making the playoffs. If it’s the intention of Byrnes to have brought in Benoit as Street’s setup man in the wake of the Gregerson loss, then this is clearly a solid move. But if Benoit was brought in to compete for the closer position as 2014 will be Street’s official last year on his contract with the Padres, then this will cause some serious issues down the stretch.
What Went Right in 2013
The surprising thing about the Padres in 2013 is that they finished way better than expected, which is funny when you consider the fact that they and the San Francisco Giants finished with the same record (76-86). Manager Bud Black is a great leader and is finally getting the necessary pieces from Byrnes in order to compete again. The loss of Adrian Gonzalez at the end of the 2010 season, when the Padres last won more than 76 games (90-72), has still had an affect on the team’s offense output; however, things have slowly started to improve from the likes of Jedd Gyorko and Will Venable who each crushed at least 22 home runs and led the team in RBI production with 63 and 53 respectively. More will certainly be needed from the rest of the gang in 2014, but with Cameron Maybin back at 100 percent, Chase Headley looking to post similar numbers to what he displayed in the tail end of the 2012 season and Yonder Alonso staying consistent, there is a newfound sense of hope growing as Spring Training approaches.
Biggest Areas of Improvement in 2014
As mentioned earlier, pitching depth and an extra bat from Smith are certainly the biggest signs of good fortune the Padres have to bank on in 2014. They still need to add an arm or two to the bullpen, which they could easily fulfill if they are willing to part ways with Carlos Quentin. With Smith now on the roster he can fill the Padres’ needs in left field where Quentin hasn’t exactly lived up to his potential that he displayed with the Chicago White Sox. While this may seem like a stretch of a proposal, perhaps trading Quentin to the Boston Red Sox or even the New York Yankees for a relief arm or two would actually help both parties involved, but give the Padres the push they need to compete at all levels in 2014.
Overall Spring Training Preview
Expect a valiant effort from the Padres this season. The Padres have always been a consistent thorn in the side of the Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers and occasionally manage to squeak up to the top virtually unnoticed by playing consistent, fundamental baseball. 2014 looks to be a make-or-break year for Black as he has only come close to the postseason once in his seven years as manager in 2010, the same year he took home the Manager of the Year Award. But even with that bit of hardware for his regular season accomplishments, the real faith from the front office comes in the form of how deep a team can make it in the postseason. Lucky for Black, the Padres might actually have the tools he needs. On paper the Padres might be able to lock up a Wild Card spot, but only as long as the Diamondbacks, and Dodgers or Giants have a rough year. More than likely it will be the Dodgers slipping up as the Giants filled-in their needs handsomely this offseason. The Padres will need to find more success offensively on the road in parks with shorter fences as Petco Park has only managed to help keep the team’s ERA low with more balls being kept in play.