The San Diego Padres’ pitcher’s spring training began on April 12 (KST) in Peoria, Arizona. Despite the presence of new pitchers such as Woo-seok Ko, Yuki Matsui, and Michael King, the start of the camp felt a bit empty.
MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, reported, “San Diego revamped its starting staff in the offseason, and it’s not done yet. ‘Michael Wacha, Seth Lugo (Kansas City Royals) and Nick Martinez (Cincinnati Reds) are gone from last year’s starting rotation. Blake Snell is still a free agent. There are definitely question marks at the back of the starting rotation,” he noted.
Only Darvish Yu and Joe Musgrove remain from last year’s starting rotation.
With King, who was acquired in the Juan Soto trade to the New York Yankees, the first through third spots are locked up, but the fourth and fifth spots are still unclear.
According to MLB.com, “Randy Vasquez and Johnny Brito, who joined King in the Soto trade, are the frontrunners for the final two spots. 안전놀이터 Other options include Pedro Avila, Matt Waldron, Drew Thorpe (also acquired in the Soto trade), Hiro Iriarte, Jay Groom, and Glen Otto. Of those pitchers, Otto is the only one with a full season as a starter in the big leagues,” he said, noting the lack of experience among the fourth and fifth starters.
“San Diego pitching coach Ruben Nievela has proven his ability to get the most out of young pitchers. San Diego is a team that likes to develop from within, but that won’t stop them from making additional outside acquisitions. According to sources, the Padres are still actively pursuing starting pitching. Along with bolstering the outfield, general manager A.J. Preller has called the prospect of bolstering the rest of the offseason one of his top two priorities.
Musgrove, who forms a one-two punch with Darvish
“The lineup might be a little weird right now, but I have a lot of faith in Mr. Preller. He does things that a lot of people don’t do, and he’s very thoughtful in a lot of ways. I know he doesn’t do things without a plan. He will organize the right forces at the right time.”
The players’ view is that Preller, who has been nicknamed “Mad Men” for his aggressive and creative approach to managing the organization, is not going to sit on his hands. Reports have already surfaced that San Diego has shown interest in the remaining starting pitchers on the free agent market, including Hyun-jin Ryu, Michael Lorenzen, and Eric Lauer.
Ryu would be a perfect fit for the Padres, given their current lineup. With a weakened offense from last year, but still in the hunt for the postseason, the Padres need immediate power. Despite the injury risk, Ryu’s career trajectory is much better than Lorenzen or Lauer. Add to that Kim Ha-seong and Ko Woo-seok, and Ryu would be the third Korean player in the organization, with the side effect of building a strong fan base in Korea.
The key is the price tag.
Ryu has an average of $10 million per year to stay in the majors. That hasn’t changed despite the slowdown in free agency. The problem is that San Diego doesn’t have the money to spend like they used to.
After years of recklessly signing long-term contracts, the team’s finances have been severely impacted by the bankruptcy of Diamond Sports Group, which had a dedicated broadcaster, Valisports, and lost broadcast rights revenue. This year, the team plans to get its payroll below $200 million, which currently sits at about $160 million, leaving about $40 million in space.
But with only two starting pitchers and two outfielders (Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jose Azuca) on the 40-man roster, San Diego, which is an odd structure, 바카라사이트 추천 still needs to add at least one more starting-caliber outfielder, even though it agreed to terms with utility free agent Jurickson Profar on Wednesday for $1 million guaranteed plus $1.5 million in incentives based on at-bats. The remaining $40 million will need to be split between four or five starters, one or two outfielders, and three or four infielders. It will be interesting to see how Preller solves this problem.