What are the San Diego Padres doing? They haven't made any pick-ups?

Answer 1

Something may be amiss in San Diego. Boche's departure for San Francisco was strange, and one wonders if he was perturbed with the front office.

You're disregarding the two trades the Padres have made:

The Josh Barfield trade looks dumb to me. Kouzmanoff can rake, but he's a fringy defender. Some scouts think he's a defensive liability. They also got Andrew Brown in the trade; he could provide some bullpen help, but his ceiling is not high.

Getting rid of Barfield looks especially dumb given the second basemen currently on the free agent market. There's no one too exciting. There was talk of interest in Craig Counsell but the front office has since denied that; now there is indication they are going after Tony Graffanino. A nice player, but a step down from what Barfield offered near term and definitely long term.

There's rumors the Padres might look to trade for Marcus Giles, which would seal the deal for their stupidity award this offseason. MG's numbers have declined in each of the last three seasons.

The Padres also traded young outfielder Ben Johnson for a couple more bullpen arms. I have no idea why they were so adamant about adding to the bullpen; as far as I'm concerned they were already stacked! However, I think Ben Johnson was overrated by the Padres, and I think they were finally starting to realize that. I think his potential to be a legit everyday player is questionable.

The Padres need to add at least one impact bat and a 3 or 4 starter. I don't think they will be able to resign Piazza since Boche left. Cliff Floyd has said he wants to stay in the National League and has the potential to replace Piazza's production if he stays healthy. He would also come at a significant discount to Piazza. If the Padres aren't comfortable with Bard and Bowen sharing catching duties, Bengie Molina or Rod Barajas are available. I like Bard's bat. I don't like that he only threw out 20% of basestealers last season, but that's far better than Piazza who threw out less than 10%.

I think they should consider a second-tier free agent starter with some upside. Tony Armas or Jason Marquis can probably be had for $3 to $4 million per year. I think they'd be smart to add a budget veteran too, perhaps Miguel Batista (who also has experience in relief) or John Thomson (ditto). Steve Trachsel is also out there.

Of the big fish, The Padres have met with Scott Boras to discuss Greg Maddux and Barry Zito. Perhaps notable also that Jeff Weaver is a Boras client and a return to the west coast could be appealing, though Adam Eaton's choice of the Phillies over the Cards will make St. Louis more anxious to secure Weaver.

Should be interesting to see what they do from here.

Answer 2

Well dont giveup just yet. They are definatly in the hunt for Barry Zito, which could really help them. They have one of the best bullpens in all of baseball, Cla Merideth and Hoffman are absolute studs. They also are thinking about Brian Giles to replaces Roberts, which in my opinion would be a great move. Roberts is aging as we all know and Giles can add a zing to the padres lineup. With the NL West, you never know who will comeout on top, but my bet will be the Padres in 2007, heck a sub .500 team could win that divison.

Answer 3

Be patient. The baseball winter meetings start next week. There will be a ton of action, as usual. That will include the Padres who will work to strengthen their team.

Chow!!

Answer 4

Mirabelli is a free agent. They could always sign him and then trade him back to the Red Sox. So far that has netted the Padres Meredith and Bowen.

Answer 5

They will make some moves soon. They will try to get a big name pitcher like zito or schmidt. Maybe not one of those two but at least one or 2 decent pitchers. I think they also need some offense. Carlos Lee would have been a good pickup but to late now.

Answer 6

You think the Padres haven't picked up anyone, the only one the Giants got was your manager. They have no first baseman, no second baseman, no third baseman, no left-fielder, no right-fielder, they lost two starting pitchers, and a relief pitcher. And have signed no one!! But we got a new manager!!

Answer 7

Its not like they have a chance to be good. The cards have eliminated them from the NLDS two years in a row! Cha Ching!

Answer 8

I have no clue. I'm more interested in this "made any pick-ups"? Are they now also a delivery service? I mean I understand they haven't made any trades or signed any free agents, but I just don't get this way to phrase that. Is it some sort of local SoCal dialect?

Answer 9

it's called slashing payroll i mean honestly how else can you explain everything they've done so far from letting bruce bochy go to trading josh barfield

Answer 10

Go to their web site.