With spring training now upon us, we have decided to roll out a team by team preview of the 2009 season; Clyde will be doing the American League, I will be doing the National League, Enjoy.
There is no question the Padres are in rebuilding mode, after they missed the 2007 play-offs by one game, San Diego fell to the NL basement in 2008 going 63-99 and finishing last in the division.
Projected Starters:
C - Nick Hundley
1B - Adrian Gonzalez
2B - David Eckstein
SS - Luis Rodriguez
3B - Kevin Kouzmanoff
LF - Chase Headley
CF - Jody Gerut
RF - Brian Giles
Projected Rotation:
#1 - Jake Peavy
#2 - Chris Young
#3 - Cha Seung Baek
#4 - Josh Geer
#5 - Wade LeBlanc
Closer - Heath Bell
Position Battles:
2B: Once hot prospect Matt Antonelli who had an awful year in AAA could still challenge for the staring second base role with a strong spring as there is not much standing in his way.
OF: Scott Hairston who started the 2008 season off with a bang could win a starting roll if any of San Deigo's outfielders fail to impress.
Rotation: San Deigo's #3-5 starters are fringe pitchers who could be replaced sometime throughout the year by Kevin Correia or prospect Will Inman.
2009 Outlook: The Padres lost Trevor Hoffman which will hurt their bullpen, and the back-end of their starting rotation lacks necessary depth. On offense, Adrian Gonzalez is really their only star, the rest of their infield is almost useless, however they do have a somewhat underrated crop of outfielders that could help complement their star first baseman and turn out to be one of the nice surprises in an otherwise dreary 2009. Bottom line: too many holes to fill in order to be competitive this year.
Projected Finish: 5th place, NL West.
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