Padres players enter spring training with an attitude and demanding respect

For all 30 major league teams, spring training means a new season is approaching with hope, energy and a clean slate. Projected success of course, is not guaranteed, and it’s only a matter of time until some of the lower tier clubs get a dose of reality. The San Diego Padres headed into Peoria, Arizona this week determined to prove they are legit, despite blowing the final two games of the NLDS that allowed the Los Angeles Dodgers to eventually become world champions. That’s the mind set and determination of this group, despite watching their division rivals get much better through key additions this past winter.

Adding to last year’s playoff sting was the fact that the Padres ownership struggle had allowed the organization to be tied up in a legal web of disarray. Ever since the death of beloved owner Peter Seidler in November 2023, things have been a bit messy. Throughout the 2024 season, the Friars had operated temporarily in the hands of Eric Kutsenda, who was Seidler’s business partner in other ventures. Since last fall however, a power struggle has emerged between Seidler’s three brothers and Peter’s wife Sheel, a prominent attorney. And a lawsuit filed by Sheel Seidler is still lurking, which kept the team’s operations in limbo. The uncertain future of financial operations rendered General Manager AJ Preller powerless to make deals this winter, including the possible signing of free agent Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki. Yet, this team is on a mission and void of distractions.

“All of this is out of our hands,” reasoned Manny Machado, the Padres veteran statesman and captain. “We just want to go out there and perform and play at the highest level.”

Things have loosened up a bit since a special MLB owners meeting approved John Seidler as the principal majority partner to approve trades and other transactions. That opened the door for Preller to offer a contract to slugging catcher Elias Diaz, which was necessary after losing Kyle Higashioka in free agency to the Texas Rangers. It also enabled the Padres to pick up Connor Joe and Jason Heyward, a right/left bat to play left field, also key additions after Jurickson Profar signed a blockbuster deal with the Atlanta Braves. Then Preller got a bit frisky and inked former Red Sox pitcher Nick Pivetta to a substantial four year, $55 million deal. That’s important because hometown hero Joe Musgrove will likely not toe the rubber this year while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

That shored up a solid starting rotation of Yu Darvish, Dylan Cease, Michael King and Pivetta, with a good number arms with major league experience waiting to get an opportunity in the Arizona sun. One glaring deficit among the group is the lack of a southpaw starting pitcher. But there are high expectations that Kyle Hart, a late bloomer who was a top hurler in Korea last year, might help round out the puzzle. The bullpen isn’t looking quite as nifty as last year due to the loss of Tanner Scott, who jumped ship and signed a four year, $72 million pact with the rival Dodgers.

At the end of the 2024, Scott, who was traded to the Friars via Miami, hinted that he was less than pleased with how the team used him down the stretch. To be fair, Scott worked in tandem with hard throwing righty Robert Suarez in sharing the closer role. Whatever. Suarez, in the final year of his deal, will be trusted to finish games now, with setup guys likely to be lefty Adrian Morejon, Jason Adam and Jeremiah Estrada. That’s still pretty good.

Of course, the National League West is arguably the strongest division in baseball. So even though the Padres match up well against most of baseball’s strongest clubs, this organization continues to play in the shadow of the World Champion Dodgers, their big brother to the north. Machado and his comrades are steadfast in the belief that the curse will be broken in 2025.

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