The San Diego Padres entered the 2015 with justifiably higher hopes than past years.
After finishing under .500 for four straight seasons, the club opted for change, axed GM Josh Byrnes, and hired former Texas Rangers assistant general manager A.J. Preller to rejuvenate the franchise. Almost immediately, Preller went on trade bonanza, acquiring Matt Kemp, Craig Kimbrel, Justin Upton, Wil Myers, and Derek Norris, while also signing James Shields to a four-year deal. The cost was significant, as prospects traded included Trea Turner (the heir apparent to Ian Desmond), Joe Ross (who has already replaced Doug Fister in Washington’s rotation), and Jace Peterson (starting at second base for the Braves). On paper, the moves looked to instantly provide the struggling club an immediate boost and get them over the .500 hump.
BOSTON, MA – JUNE 15: Jace Peterson #8 of the Atlanta Braves knocks in a run in the seventh inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on June 15, 2015 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
When the Padres didn’t make any noticeable improvement, the club fired manager Bud Black midseason, widely considered one of the best skippers in the game in a bleak situation, and replaced him with Pat Murphy. The moves Preller made weren’t paying immediate dividends either. Kemp wasn’t hitting for his usual power, Wil Myers hit the DL often, James Shield while solid started to show his age, and Kimbrel saw his 2014 ERA increase by a full run.
Going into the trade deadline, the Padres were four games under .500 and many industry insiders expected the club to sell. That wasn’t an unreasonable expectation, as our own Tim Livingston noted the club had numerous players who could bring reasonable returns. Both Upton and Ian Kennedy are unrestricted free agents who could walk for nothing but a draft pick, yet the Padres stood pat. While Shields is pitching OK now, the team could have moved him and his big contract clearing up cap space for next year. The club actually were technically buyers, trading for reliever Marc Rzepczynski and not doing anything else on trade deadline day. The hope remained the club would turn things around and challenge for a playoff spot – so far that hasn’t happened.
SAN DIEGO, CA – JUNE 27: Justin Upton #10 of the San Diego Padres hits a two-run home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Petco Park June 27, 2015 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images)
Preller must have looked at his August schedule and thought there was some ground to build in NL Wild Card spot as the club opened the month facing the Marlins, Brewers, and Phillies – all teams who at this present moment are at least 15 games under .500. While San Diego opened winning two of three games, the club has rattled off six straight losses in about the most embarrassing way possible.
The club lost three of four to the Brewers, one of five teams that haven’t hit 50 wins, in spectacular fashion, getting outscored 22-7 in the final three games of the series. Going into a series at home against the Phillies, the club had a chance to reverse it’s fortunes and get closer to .500 again. Instead, the club was swept as the Phillies sent out two rookie starters in game one and two, Aaron Nola and Adam Morgan, and lost the final game of the series being outdueled by veteran Jerome Williams – the latter being especially ugly.
While .500 seemed attainable just over a week ago, the Padres now sit a 52-60, good enough for fourth in the NL West. The season is lost and the Padres going all-in now looks like a massive mistake on Preller’s part – his stubbornness during the trade deadline didn’t help. Now the club is in baseball purgatory.
With the ability to make waiver trades, which is currently a booming market, San Diego needs to trade some of it’s expiring assets and recoup some prospect value – otherwise they’re going to have nothing to show for mortgaging their future last offseason. Sticking to its guns and staying pat with the same roster is disaster waiting to happen. Preller needs to recognize where his club is at and handle the situation accordingly. That doesn’t mean the Padres should rip up the floor boards and trade everything that isn’t stapled down, but the club needs to do something.
Once a team seemingly on the rise, the Padres are now a mess. It’s time to clean it all up.
