Fixing The Franchise: The San Diego Padres – The Second Half of 2019

Following the 2019 First Year Player Draft – we are now ready to see how the Padres perform through the rest of the season. Will any more trades be necessary for this squad as they make a playoff push?

As of June 6th, we are 7.5 games out of the lead in the N.L. West with a 36-26 record. At this point we are tied with the Rockies for a Wild Card spot.

June 2nd

• The Marlins acquired Gavin Lux from the Dodgers for Anfernee Seymour.

June 6th

Target: Kenta Maeda

I took a look at the trade block – and for some reason the Dodgers had Kenta Maeda there. He is 30 years old – and has five years left on his deal. I am not too concerned with that because it is only $3.1M per season. This will give me an opportunity to build my pitching depth and add a veteran as I continue to seek a playoff spot.

Player	Age	Ovr.	Pot.	To	Received	Pos.	Age	Ovr.	Pot.
Luis Gil	20	61	B	Dodgers	Kenta Maeda	SP	30	84	C
Peter Van Gansen	25	66	C
Ivan Castillo	23	61	C

Of the prospects I moved in this deal – Luis Gil has the most potential. I have plenty of minor league pitching depth. This move also allows me to move Chris Paddack to AAA – he needs some more time to develop and has a 4+ ERA at the moment.

June 25th

Texas League All Star Game

• Tim Tebow – DH – 0/4 K
• Jasson Dominguez – CF – 1/3
• Kyle Overstreet – 1B – 0/1
• Aderlin Rodriguez – 1B – DNP

June 28th

• The Angels acquired Hunter Dozier from the Royals for Jo Adell.

June Results

• The Padres were 16-10 through the month and sit in third in the N.L. West. We are 7.5 games back of the first place Dodgers, and currently hold the second position in the N.L. Wild Card standings behind the Rockies.
• SP Mackenzie Gore (AAA) 3.19 ERA, 29 K, 31 IP.
• SP Jesse Scholtens (AA) 3.23 ERA, 29 K, 30.2 IP.
• 1B Jose Pirela (AAA) .354 AVG, 14 RBI, 82 AB.
• LF Tim Tebow (AA) .341 AVG, 19 RBI, 82 AB.
• *SP Ryan Weathers (AAA) 5.24 ERA, 13 BB, 22.1 IP.
• *SP Freicer Perez (AA) 4.71 ERA, 10 BB, 28.2 IP.

July 2nd

• The Giants acquired D.J. LeMahieu from the Yankees for Reyes Moronta and Brandon Belt.

July 4th

• The Brewers acquired Craig Stammen from the Mets for Braden Webb and Brice Turang.

July 7th

Futures Game

• Brenden McKay – SP – 2IP, 2H, 1R, 1 ER, 2BB, 2K
• Adley Rutschman – C – 0/4
• Robert Puason – SS – DNP

July 9th

All Star Game

• Jose Alvarado – CP – DNP
• Christian Yelich – RF – 0/3 BB
• Gary Sanchez – C – 1/3 2RBI, HR, BB
• Hector Rondon – RP – DNP

July 10th

AAA All Star Game

• Jose Pirela – 1B – 0/4
• Alexander Palma – RF – 1/3 2B, BB

July 14th

With the Padres down a run in the bottom of the 9th – Gary Sanchez stepped up with one on and one out. He turned on a hanging cutter and drove it over the left field wall for his third homerun of the game and the 8-7 win.

July 15th

Our organization took the opportunity to reward some of our players for the seasons they were having. We also saw this as a great time to extend some of our young talent.

Name	Age	Pos.	Ovr.	Pot.	Yrs.	Sal.	Contract
Gary Sanchez	26	C	89	B	3	$5.7M	$17M
Marcus Stroman	27	SP	87	B	3	$8.3M	$25M
Fernando Tatis Jr.	20	SS	80	A	5	$7M	$35M
Chris Paddack	23	SP	77	A	3	$1.7M	$5M

July 21st

• The Angels acquired James Paxton from the Yankees for Hunter Dozier and Trevor Cahill.

• The Rockies acquired Billy Hamilton from the Royals for Ryan Rolison and Dom Nunez.

July 21st

Target: Josh Hader

Jose Alvarado has been struggling as our closer lately – even though he was an All-Star. He has a 5.00 ERA with 5 BS this season. He just is not ready for the 9th inning. The Brewers are 5 games out of the wild card race and have decided to sell. Josh Hader has a 2.57 ERA and is just the guy I need for our playoff push.

Player	Age	Ovr.	Pot.	To	Received	Pos.	Age	Ovr.	Pot
Jasson Dominguez	18	62	B	Brewers	Josh Hader	CP	24	90	A
Jose Castillo	23	80	B
Austin Hedges	26	76	C

Jose Castillo has not been performing well this year – he has a 6.99 ERA and 1.94 WHIP. The same can be said for Austin Hedges – who has a .144 AVG and .216 OBP. Jasson Dominguez is a young prospect – but I am OK including him to get this deal done.

• Stephen Vogt is called up from AAA to backup Gary Sanchez.

Contract Extensions

Name	Age	Pos.	Ovr.	Pot.	Yrs.	Sal.	Contract
Josh Hader	24	CP	88	A	4	$5M	$20M
Zach Wheeler	28	SP	81	B	2	$9.3M	$18.6M

Josh Hader is an exciting young talent with high upside. I locked him down for four more season. Zach Wheeler is an impending free agent and I do not want to lose him for nothing. While the salary is high I maintain control of him for two more years.

July 29th

We had another walk off opportunity – and this time Josh Bell was at the plate. The game was tied 7-7 and Will Smith was in to pitch for the Giants. Josh Bell stepped up and drove the ball over the fence to give the Padres a 9-7 victory. This extended the Padres winning streak to six games.

Target: Dump Zach Wheeler

Wheeler is really pissing me off. I negotiated an extension with him – that he accepted. Somehow he still has a bad attitude around the clubhouse and his morale is low. Rather than carry that salary I am going to call up Chris Paddack to take his spot in the rotation. I am going to move Wheeler for a prospect.

Player	Age	Ovr.	Pot.	To	Received	Pos.	Age	Ovr.	Pot
Zach Wheeler	28	83	B	Rays	Wander Franco	SS	18	68	A
Robert Puason	18	63	A

This is huge! The move does not really impact my starting rotation at all, I shed a huge chunk of future salary, and snag Wander Samuel Franco. Wow.

July 29th

• The Athletics acquired Whit Merrifield from the Royals for Franklin Barreto and Grant Holmes.

July 30th

• The Cubs acquired Starlin Castro from the Marlins for Brennen Davis.
• The Braves acquired Chris Archer from the Pirates for A.J. Minter and Allen Cordoba.
• The Astros acquired Edwin Diaz from the Mets for Lance McCullers Jr. and Juan Pineda.
• The Rangers acquired Martin Maldonado from the Royals for Christopher Seise.
• The Mariners acquired Adalberto Mondesi from the Royals for Jarred Kelenic and David McKay.

• The Royals have made a ton of moves this year. They traded away Hunter Dozier, Billy Hamilton, Whit Merrifield, and Adalberto Mondesi. In return they have received Jo Adell (#4/#1), Franklin Barreto, Grant Holmes (NR/#14), Ryan Rolison (#89/#2), Dom Nunez (NR/NR), Jarred Kelenic (#24/#1) and David McKay (NR/#28).
• Real world prospect rankings in parenthesis (MLB Rank/Organization Rank)

July Results

• The Padres were 16-9 in July and are third in the N.L West, 9.5 games back of the Dodgers. We are currently holding the second Wild Card spot behind the Rockies.
• SP Mason Englert (AA) 2.40 ERA, 42 K, 30 IP.
• 3B Jason Vosler (AAA) .306 AVG, 7 RBI, 72 AB.
• *RP Aaron Loup (AAA) 4.15 ERA, 13 IP.

August 25th

• Ender Inciarte sprained his MCL – out 2 weeks.

August Results

• This was a terrible month for the ball club. The Padres were 11-17 in August. We ended the month with an 8 game losing streak. We are third in the N.L West, 11.5 games back of the Dodgers. We are currently out of the second Wild Card spot by 2 games behind the Rockies and Nationals.

Prospects

*As of September 1st 2019

Team Rank	Previous MLB Rank	Current MLB Rank	Name	Age	Pos.	Ovr.	Level	Pot.
1	12	8	Adley Rutschman	21	C	71	AAA	A
2	NR	14	Wander Samuel Franco	18	SS	69	AAA	A
3	32	21	Brendan McKay	23	SP	72	AAA	A
4	22	25	Mackenzie Gore	20	SP	68	AAA	A
5	47	30	Luis Patino	19	SP	67	AAA	A
6	45	31	Ryan Weathers	19	SP	69	AAA	A
7	26	33	Alexander Palma	22	RF	69	AAA	A
8	NR	NR	Freicer Perez	23	SP	63	AA	B
9	NR	NR	Joey Lucchesi	25	SP	77	AAA	B
10	NR	NR	Mason Englert	19	SP	61	AA	B

We continue to have one of the best – if not the best – farm systems in baseball. The Padres have seven of the top 35 prospects in the game.

• Luis Urias was traded to the Mets. He is their everyday second baseman. He is batting .250/.318/.372 with 11 HR and 47 RBI through 524 AB.
• Xavier Edwards, who was traded to the Orioles, is the #26 prospect in baseball.
• Michael Baez, who was traded to the Rays, is currently not ranked.

September Results

• What a month for the Friars. With an 18-9 record in September – including a 7 game winnings streak to end the season – the Padres clinched the top Wild Card spot and will host the Nationals for the right to play the Dodgers in the NLDS.

Awards

Our organization did not come away with any of the notable regular season awards this year. Mike Clevenger (P) was our lone Gold Glove recipient and we came away with two Silver Sluggers – Gary Sanchez (C) and Christian Yelich (OF).

Award	Player	Team	Stats
N.L. MVP	Nolan Arenado	Rockies	.310 AVG, 40 HR, 116 RBI
N.L. Cy Young	Clayton Kershaw	Dodgers	17-5, 2.83 ERA, 204 K
N.L. Rookie of the Year	Austin Riley	Braves	.279 AVG, 23 HR, 92 RBI
A.L. MVP	Mike Trout	Angels	.330 AVG, 34 HR, 106 RBI
A.L. Cy Young	Chris Sale	Red Sox	19-9, 3.00 ERA, 249 K
A.L. Rookie of the Year	Yusei Kikuchi	Mariners	19-5, 2.51 ERA, 183 K

Player Performance Through The Regular Season

Player	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG.	OBP.	SLG.
Jeff McNeil	156	560	82	174	19	77	.311	.376	.475
Manny Machado	155	607	77	152	18	65	.250	.331	.399
Christian Yelich	160	567	108	175	32	101	.309	.407	.557
Josh Bell	148	534	77	157	31	102	.294	.391	.522
Gary Sanchez	126	493	76	135	34	97	.274	.360	.523
Ender Inciarte	146	560	55	154	6	45	.275	.339	.363
Fernando Tatis Jr.	140	487	58	105	12	44	.216	.302	.355
Hunter Renfroe	91	297	32	67	16	45	.226	.279	.438
Franchy Cordero	98	277	50	74	14	41	.267	.349	.484
Matt Duffy	138	320	43	104	5	40	.325	.392	.462
Stephen Vogt	30	78	10	13	4	12	.167	.292	.397
Andrew Toles	63	152	17	29	4	17	.191	.241	.342
Tim Beckham	54	108	10	27	2	6	.250	.325	.333

• Christian Yelich was the heart and soul of this offense all year. He put up great numbers and proved to be an awesome acquisition. Josh Bell and Gary Sanchez were not too far behind him – establishing a murderers row in the middle of our lineup.
• Manny Machado had a disappointing season. Especially when you compare him and his $30M salary to someone like Matt Duffy, who led the team in batting average off the bench.

Player	G	W	L	SV	IP	ERA	WHIP
Noah Sydergaard	33	14	10	0	196	3.58	1.25
Marcus Stroman	33	13	9	0	198.2	3.44	1.21
Chris Paddack	23	7	8	0	130.1	3.94	1.30
Mike Clevenger	32	11	6	0	192.2	3.36	1.28
Kenta Maeda	31	11	7	0	165.1	3.27	1.23
Robert Stock	57	7	3	0	60.1	2.39	1.28
Hector Rondon	93	3	2	0	97.1	2.68	1.15
Diego Castillo	71	5	1	0	74.1	3.75	1.39
Jose Alvarado	67	5	1	23	64	2.81	1.25
Adam Conley	64	3	0	7	92	2.54	1.16
Jonathan Holder	73	4	8	0	74	4.01	1.38
Josh Hader	63	2	3	43	57	2.84	1.33

• It is awesome to see that all of our starting pitchers ended the season with ERAs under 4.00.
• The bullpen was incredibly reliable all season. Robert Stock was a nice surprise in middle relief for us this year.
• Jose Alvarado was much more successful after making the move away from the Closer’s spot.

Playoff Picture

	Matchup
N.L. Wild Card	Nationals @ Padres
NLDS	Cubs vs Braves
NLDS	Wild Card vs Dodgers
A.L. Wild Card	Astros @ Yankees
ALDS	Indians vs Mariners
ALDS	Wild Card vs Red Sox

Coming Up

It is time for playoff baseball! Can our beloved San Diego Padres take down Max Scherzer in the Wild Card game? How would the Padres fare against their division rival Los Angeles Dodgers in a best of five series?

– Buzz