San Diego Padres 2017 Team Preview

The San Diego Padres, led by first baseman Wil Myers, will try to avoid the worst record in MLB in 2017. With young talent, the rebuild has truly begun.

The San Diego Padres were on rocky tides the last couple of years, but they seem to have righted the ship going into 2017, and have a steady course for their rebuild. Trying to end the third longest playoff drought in MLB behind the Seattle Mariners and Miami Marlins will have to wait, but there are some intriguing pieces that could ultimately be a part of what Padres fans hope is the club’s first World Series title.

The Padres had a rough go of it in 2016. They finished tied for the worst record in the National League, and amazingly had a season-long winning streak of only three games. They ended up with 68 wins, and finished with a losing record for the sixth straight season. San Diego sports fan thought they had the worst of it with this awful season, and then the bottom dropped out with the Chargers’ relocation to Los Angeles.

Finding season highlights can be quite difficult when evaluating 2016. From all accounts San Diego were wonderful hosts of the final All-Star Game that “mattered.” The Padres did set themselves off in a good position in the upcoming MLB Draft with the third overall pick. And they also were able to fleece the White Sox into acquiring James Shields in a trade that looks very much one-sided half a year later.

Rebuilds throughout baseball sometimes take longer than a fanbase can tolerate. Take the defending champion Chicago Cubs for example. They had a few core players who went through the bulk of the dreary losing, such as Anthony Rizzo. The Padres have such a player that they could build around with a first baseman of their own in Wil Myers. The 25-year-old first baseman has already won a Rookie of the Year Award, and was the hometown hero in the All-Star Game last season. Myers is locked into the Padres’ future with a contract through 2023, and will be a key building block for San Diego.

With a projected MLB-low 66 wins by Fangraphs, and a “who’s that?” mentality by the common baseball fan when looking at their lineup, what is there to get excited about? If nothing else, the Royals, Giants and Cubs have proven that championships are mostly won by accumulating and cultivating homegrown talent, and the Padres are starting to go down that path.

King of the Hill?

Trevor Cahill might just work his way back into a starting rotation after signing as a free agent in January. The 29-year-old right hander won 18 games in 2010, a season in which he made his only All-Star appearance. But he hasn’t started more than 20 games in a season since 2013. The Padres could really use his early career production where he hovered around 200 innings pitched.

Chacin Comes to the 619

Another starting rotation hopeful is Jhoulys Chacin. Chacin’s best season came in 2013 with the Rockies, when he led the team in wins and WAR. Signing with the Padres in the offseason, this will be his third team in the NL West, which he must be very familiar with by now.

Southern California Connection

Taking the I-5 down an hour and a half this season is Jered Weaver. Weaver had spent all of his career that started in 2006 with the Angels, but will be a much-needed veteran on the staff in San Diego this season. The three-time All-Star Weaver has seen his ERA blimp to 4.64 and 5.06 over the last two seasons, respectively. Weaver has led the league in wins twice, however, and perhaps he can find a career renaissance with a new team.

Out of those three options, someone should be able to exceed the results given by Edwin Jackson when they take the bump.

Familiar Faces

One of the biggest additions for a full season will be steady playing time for exciting young outfielder Manuel Margot. Margot, who was acquired in the Craig Kimbrel deal with Boston, is currently rated as the #23 best prospect in baseball by MLB.com. With exceptional speed and defensive skills, Margot has time to learn with limited pressure, as the Padres don’t measure to be a contender in the NL anytime soon.

Hunter Renfroe is another outfielder who should make a sizable impact on the Padres’ lineup this season. With the chance to hit behind the established Wil Myers, Renfroe could be the power bat that the Padres need, and as soon as this season could hit anywhere from 25 to 30 home runs.

The Padres have for the most part gotten rid of the big veteran contracts. As it currently stands, they are at a league-low of only a bit over $18 million committed to the 25-man roster. They are retaining salary on players on other teams such as Matt Kemp, James Shields and Melvin Upton, among others. Last season they also parted with Drew Pomeranz, Fernando Rodney and Andrew Cashner. The vestiges of the 2015 offseason spending spree for the Padres have been washed away, minus Wil Myers.

San Diego also raised a few eyebrows in December when they non-tendered right-hander Tyson Ross after seven seasons with the club. He later signed with the Texas Rangers as he recovers from thoracic outlet surgery.

Double J Gone

Jon Jay was acquired in a trade and performing well for the Padres last season before he suffered a broken forearm. He has since moved on to the Cubs, and his departure has opened up space in center field for Padres 2012 first-round pick Travis Jankowski to man the spot. Replacing Jay’s top-of-the-order prowess will be important in exceeding the expectations for the Padres offense.

No More Norris

Derek Norris never became the backstop the Padres had hoped for. After making an All-Star Game in 2014, it was looking like he was moving toward the upper echelon of catchers in the league. Fast forward two seasons, and he hit a putrid .186 and allowed the most stolen bases against him. Norris was traded in the offseason to Washington, but didn’t land the starting catching job. It will be interesting to see which team signs him now.