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Catcher
Roid Boy Yasmani Grandal had a very respectable 55 game debut last year and gave the Pads hope for the future at the position after Nick Hundley fell flat on his face. We now know why. Grandal will miss the first 50 games this year and who knows how he'll perform without mother's little helper coarsing through his veins. In the meantime, Hundley will attempt to justify the reason why the club gave him a contract extension before last year. As mentioned, 2012 saw him come out of the gates with a thud before being demoted to AAA and then spending the rest of the year on the DL due to a torn meniscus. Hundley has decent pop, but is as consistent as an 80 year old's bladder. John Baker will serve as his backup until Grandal returns.
1st Base
Yonder Alonso also had a very respectable rookie campaign and will man 1st Base for the forseeable future (which means until he is close to being eligible for free agency, at which point the team will deal him). Alonso's power needs to improve and, with a year's maturity under his belt, as well as the fences being moved in at Petco, you can be sure he'll at least double his 9 dinger output from 2012. He has a sweet lefty swing and certainly passes the eye test. Jesus Guzman, Mark Kotsay and Kyle Blanks (if he makes the squad) will vie for the scraps.
2nd Base
You can refer to the recent thread on the Padre middle infield for my thoughts on how this will shake out, but...as of now, the organization's depth chart has Logan Forsythe listed as the starter with Alexis Amarista as the backup. Obviously, the glaring ommission is prospect Jedd Gyorko who has torn up AA and AA over the past two years to the tune of 60 homers and over 220 RBI. Of course, the wild card is that he is a third baseman by trade and the club hopes that he can make the move to second. Unless he falls flat on his face with the glove in preseason, he'll be the every day second baseman. Forsythe is a grinder with some power potential and adequate speed, but nothing that will blow any skirts up. Amarista (who came over in the Frieri trade from the Angels) is a little firecracker who can give an occassional emotional boost to the squad and will serve as a super-utility guy.
Shortstop
Everth Cabrera fulfilled Gwynninthehall's boasts that he would lead the league in stolen bases some day, and he did it while spending the first month and-a-half or so in the minors. Everth's potential suggests he can be a Rafael Furcal type (with a little less pop) but he needs to find a way to get on base a little more. He is a plus defender with great range and a big arm; however, he's prone to some WTF type errors from time-to-time, so becoming more consistant accross the board is the key to Everth's success. The club has waited for Everth to put it together for a couple of years now and their patience might be wearing thin as he was mentioned in possible deals throughout the winter. Forsythe and Amarista will be the first in line to get time at short if Cabrera falters.
Third Base
I'll be the first one to eat a little crow on Chase Headley. I was all ready to write him off as a decent glove, decent average, no power guy who would be just good enough to maintain an every day job. Boy, did his monster second half change all that. Will he top 30 homers and lead the league in RBI again? Well, moving the fences in at his home park won't hurt and will help even out his gaudy home/road splits. The Pads may have missed the window to sign him to an extenstion and those talks have gone nowhere, so us San Diegans will have to be prepared to hear the trade rumors as the deadline approaches this year. Jedd Gyorko will move on over if that happens and Amarista and James Darnell (returning from a second shoulder surgery in two years) will back up.
Outfield
Carlos Quentin was one of the Padres signed to an extension last year and will hope to top 100 games (which he's done only three times over his 7 year career). He's lost some weight this offseason and had his knee scoped in October to clean up some debris in his balky knee. If he can play in at least 120 games, it'll give the Pads a steady presence behind Headley and should approach 30 homers. Hands of stone Jesus Guzman, Chris Denorfia and James Darnell will pitch in when Quentin is out.
Cameron Maybin is another one of those Pads who was signed to an extension last year (it seems that they made an announcement every week about extending someone) and is another one of those guys who they are waiting on to really break out. No doubt he has the tools and the attitude, but his consistency has not caught up. At the very least, he's an A+ defender in centerfield with A+ speed on the basebaths (when he gets on). He also has some power potential and anyone who witnessed his moonshot in AZ last year can testify to that. Will Venable will shift over from right when Maybin needs a break and Amarista also spent some time in center last year.
It seems the club has accepted that Venable is what he is - a good defender with some power potential and speed who can't find any kind of consistency (there's that word again, Griswold would be proud) - so he's best suited to be the lefty in a platoon with the righty Denorfia. Together, they'll combine to provide solid defense, speed and occassional pop.
Starting Rotation
Clayton Richard, Edinson Volquez and Jason Marquis are the only locks entering this spring. The rest will be a race to see who is ready from their various injuries first. Richard will "anchor" the rotation and is still the guy the Padre fans glare at and say "YOU! You're the one we got for Peavey, so prove it, bub!". Richard is steady, if unspectacular and is useful in fantasy leagues only really when pitching at home. Volquez remains an enigma and, if you are in an archaic league that doesn't use WHIP, you really like him. Otherwise, be prepared to take the risk of his high WHIP to take on the potential of those Ks. Marquis was brought in with a beavy of others to fill in when the starters penciled in on opening day went down and proved to be a steadying presence every 5th day. He's their big free agent signing this offseason. Oy vey! Andrew Cashner, Corey Luebke, Anthony Bass, Casey Kelly and Robbie Erlin will try to make their way back within the first month or two. The Friars wil be in decent shape on the hill if Luebke and Cashner can get back soon. Otherwise, Eric Stults, Tyson Ross and (God help us) Freddy Garcia will vie for roster spots.
Bullpen
The lone All-Star rep from last year, Huston Street, was solid at the back end of games last year and was signed to an extension mid-year. Unfortunately, he had a few stints on the DL and only pitched in 39 innings. Luke Gregerson remains in the fold and will be the primary 8th inning man and first to grab any save opps if/when Street goes down. However, Dale Thayer and Brad Brach will also eat in to some of thos save chances and none of those make for the sure "handcuff" to Street. Lefty specialist Joe Thatcher returns from his various ailments and just kills lefty hitters when he is in.
Roid Boy Yasmani Grandal had a very respectable 55 game debut last year and gave the Pads hope for the future at the position after Nick Hundley fell flat on his face. We now know why. Grandal will miss the first 50 games this year and who knows how he'll perform without mother's little helper coarsing through his veins. In the meantime, Hundley will attempt to justify the reason why the club gave him a contract extension before last year. As mentioned, 2012 saw him come out of the gates with a thud before being demoted to AAA and then spending the rest of the year on the DL due to a torn meniscus. Hundley has decent pop, but is as consistent as an 80 year old's bladder. John Baker will serve as his backup until Grandal returns.
1st Base
Yonder Alonso also had a very respectable rookie campaign and will man 1st Base for the forseeable future (which means until he is close to being eligible for free agency, at which point the team will deal him). Alonso's power needs to improve and, with a year's maturity under his belt, as well as the fences being moved in at Petco, you can be sure he'll at least double his 9 dinger output from 2012. He has a sweet lefty swing and certainly passes the eye test. Jesus Guzman, Mark Kotsay and Kyle Blanks (if he makes the squad) will vie for the scraps.
2nd Base
You can refer to the recent thread on the Padre middle infield for my thoughts on how this will shake out, but...as of now, the organization's depth chart has Logan Forsythe listed as the starter with Alexis Amarista as the backup. Obviously, the glaring ommission is prospect Jedd Gyorko who has torn up AA and AA over the past two years to the tune of 60 homers and over 220 RBI. Of course, the wild card is that he is a third baseman by trade and the club hopes that he can make the move to second. Unless he falls flat on his face with the glove in preseason, he'll be the every day second baseman. Forsythe is a grinder with some power potential and adequate speed, but nothing that will blow any skirts up. Amarista (who came over in the Frieri trade from the Angels) is a little firecracker who can give an occassional emotional boost to the squad and will serve as a super-utility guy.
Shortstop
Everth Cabrera fulfilled Gwynninthehall's boasts that he would lead the league in stolen bases some day, and he did it while spending the first month and-a-half or so in the minors. Everth's potential suggests he can be a Rafael Furcal type (with a little less pop) but he needs to find a way to get on base a little more. He is a plus defender with great range and a big arm; however, he's prone to some WTF type errors from time-to-time, so becoming more consistant accross the board is the key to Everth's success. The club has waited for Everth to put it together for a couple of years now and their patience might be wearing thin as he was mentioned in possible deals throughout the winter. Forsythe and Amarista will be the first in line to get time at short if Cabrera falters.
Third Base
I'll be the first one to eat a little crow on Chase Headley. I was all ready to write him off as a decent glove, decent average, no power guy who would be just good enough to maintain an every day job. Boy, did his monster second half change all that. Will he top 30 homers and lead the league in RBI again? Well, moving the fences in at his home park won't hurt and will help even out his gaudy home/road splits. The Pads may have missed the window to sign him to an extenstion and those talks have gone nowhere, so us San Diegans will have to be prepared to hear the trade rumors as the deadline approaches this year. Jedd Gyorko will move on over if that happens and Amarista and James Darnell (returning from a second shoulder surgery in two years) will back up.
Outfield
Carlos Quentin was one of the Padres signed to an extension last year and will hope to top 100 games (which he's done only three times over his 7 year career). He's lost some weight this offseason and had his knee scoped in October to clean up some debris in his balky knee. If he can play in at least 120 games, it'll give the Pads a steady presence behind Headley and should approach 30 homers. Hands of stone Jesus Guzman, Chris Denorfia and James Darnell will pitch in when Quentin is out.
Cameron Maybin is another one of those Pads who was signed to an extension last year (it seems that they made an announcement every week about extending someone) and is another one of those guys who they are waiting on to really break out. No doubt he has the tools and the attitude, but his consistency has not caught up. At the very least, he's an A+ defender in centerfield with A+ speed on the basebaths (when he gets on). He also has some power potential and anyone who witnessed his moonshot in AZ last year can testify to that. Will Venable will shift over from right when Maybin needs a break and Amarista also spent some time in center last year.
It seems the club has accepted that Venable is what he is - a good defender with some power potential and speed who can't find any kind of consistency (there's that word again, Griswold would be proud) - so he's best suited to be the lefty in a platoon with the righty Denorfia. Together, they'll combine to provide solid defense, speed and occassional pop.
Starting Rotation
Clayton Richard, Edinson Volquez and Jason Marquis are the only locks entering this spring. The rest will be a race to see who is ready from their various injuries first. Richard will "anchor" the rotation and is still the guy the Padre fans glare at and say "YOU! You're the one we got for Peavey, so prove it, bub!". Richard is steady, if unspectacular and is useful in fantasy leagues only really when pitching at home. Volquez remains an enigma and, if you are in an archaic league that doesn't use WHIP, you really like him. Otherwise, be prepared to take the risk of his high WHIP to take on the potential of those Ks. Marquis was brought in with a beavy of others to fill in when the starters penciled in on opening day went down and proved to be a steadying presence every 5th day. He's their big free agent signing this offseason. Oy vey! Andrew Cashner, Corey Luebke, Anthony Bass, Casey Kelly and Robbie Erlin will try to make their way back within the first month or two. The Friars wil be in decent shape on the hill if Luebke and Cashner can get back soon. Otherwise, Eric Stults, Tyson Ross and (God help us) Freddy Garcia will vie for roster spots.
Bullpen
The lone All-Star rep from last year, Huston Street, was solid at the back end of games last year and was signed to an extension mid-year. Unfortunately, he had a few stints on the DL and only pitched in 39 innings. Luke Gregerson remains in the fold and will be the primary 8th inning man and first to grab any save opps if/when Street goes down. However, Dale Thayer and Brad Brach will also eat in to some of thos save chances and none of those make for the sure "handcuff" to Street. Lefty specialist Joe Thatcher returns from his various ailments and just kills lefty hitters when he is in.
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