[Sundance]

Catchers

Starting C: Jose Rodriguez
2034 Stats: .271/.384/.469, 21 HR, 32 doubles, 80 RBI, 5 SB, 5.9 WAR
After a bit of a “down” year last season, Rodriguez enters 2035 as the second best catcher in the league according to the experts. At 34 years old, Father Time has started to catch up to Rodriguez. His power has diminished slightly and his legs are starting to go. However, he’s still got quite a lot left in the tank, so he should be able to produce another stellar season for the Padres.

Backup: Dan Martin
2034 Stats: .293/.371/.422, 3 HR, 19 RBI, 1.1 WAR
Martin could probably start for most teams in the league, but with Rodriguez in front of him, he’s a backup on this squad. He’s average defensively, but he’s a very solid offensive talent. The only real knock against him is that he’s a bit of a free swinger, so his strikeout numbers will always be high. Should Rodriguez ever go down with an injury, Martin will be able to step right in without missing a beat.

Infielders

Starting 1B: Jean-Philippe Gras
2034 Stats: .296/.352/.373, 4 HR, 24 doubles, 4 triples, 73 RBI, 26 SB, 1.7 WAR
In his first season at first base, he won a Gold Glove. That should tell you a little bit about this kid’s work ethic. Gras is the type of player that continues to defy the “experts.” Despite being a former 1st round draft pick, he’s never been highly thought of among the scouts. But he’s a career .296 hitter and his production continues to improve just about every season. The only real knock against him is that he has no homerun power to speak off. But he’s a solid contact hitter than can drive the ball into the gaps, he’s one of the toughest people in the league to strikeout, he's got top notch speed, and he’s one of the best defenders in the league. And let’s not forget that he loves to come up big when it matters the most.

Starting 2B: Jim DeWitt
2034 Stats: .281/.299/.396, 7 HR, 26 doubles, 5 triples, 70 RBI, 21 SB, 1.9 WAR
DeWitt is a solid big league player. There’s nothing too flashy about his game; he just goes and takes care of business day in and day out. He’s a career .282 hitter with good speed and great instincts on the base paths.

Starting 3B: Brendan Rodgers
2034 Stats: .259/.325/.422, 16 HR, 19 doubles, 40 RBI, 19 SB, 3.7 WAR
The old man just keeps chugging along. 2035 will be Rodgers’ 19th year in the league and with the club. 2800 hits, 288 HR, 420 doubles, 1114 RBI, and 712 SB. He’s certainly not the player that he once was, but there still appears to be quite a bit left in the tank. He’s only had a WAR under 3 just once in his career. His legs are going, but he’s a Gold Glove caliber defender and can still make pitchers pay at the plate. We’ve been waiting for his inevitable drop in performance, but he just keeps holding on. 2035 will be a big year in regards to his future as a ball player.

Starting SS: Alfredo Miranda
2034 Stats: .293/.355/.462, 19 HR, 35 doubles, 9 triples, 70 RBI, 23 SB, 6.6 WAR
Considered by many to be the league’s top shortstop, Miranda is coming off a year in which he earned his 4th All-Star selection, his 2nd Gold Glove, and his 2nd Silver Slugger. In 3 of the last 4 years he’s had a WAR of 6.0 or higher. Can be counted on for something in the range of 20 HR, 30 doubles, and 20-30 SB per year.

Backup: Bob McKee
2034 Stats: .283/.313/.413, 2 HR, 12 doubles, 3 triples, 29 RBI, 1.0 WAR
McKee had a very successful rookie campaign serving as a backup infielder. He’s got enough offensive talent to contribute when called upon, he’s got decent speed and knows how to pick his spots on the bases, and he’s got a solid, solid glove. There’s not much more that we could ask for from a backup.

Backup: Juan Colon
2034 Stats: .226/.354/.316, 1 HR, 7 doubles, 12 RBI, 12 SB, 0.3 WAR
Colon is the type of player that flashes enough skill to make a big league roster, but isn’t talented enough to be an everyday player. There’s a lot to like about this kid – he’s got good speed, he’s got a good eye, he’s incredibly hard to strikeout, he’s a solid defender, and he has fantastic range. However, he just doesn’t make clean contact with the ball as much as you’d like, so his BA is always going to leave you wishing for more. Still, as a backup, we like him. He’s a tough out that is going to make pitchers work.

Outfielders

Starting LF: Jorge Alvarado
2034 Stats: .325/.357/.514, 26 HR, 38 doubles, 4 triples, 93 RBI, 27 SB, 6.8 WAR
Alvarado has been pegged by experts as the best leftfielder in the league, and he has the numbers to back it up. Last year he set career bests in games, hits, runs, doubles, BA, OBP, and WAR. He also earned his 3rd Gold Glove, 3rd All-Star selection, 1st Silver Slugger, and he was named the MVP of the NL League Series.

Starting CF: Jose Delgado
2034 Stats: .266/.327/.402, 2 HR, 24 doubles, 8 triples, 42 RBI, 20 SB, 0.6 WAR
Delgado came back down to Earth some in 2034. After winning the NL ROY in 2033, his sophomore effort was nothing more than average at best. His biggest issue last season was his health, as he played just 94 games. So, the jury is still out on Delgado. This upcoming season should tell us a lot about him.

Starting RF: Edouard Kieffer
2034 Stats: .232/.302/.391, 13 HR, 33 doubles, 5 triples, 65 RBI, 13 SB, 2.2 WAR
Kieffer is on a downward trend, and no one can figure out why. After spending a couple seasons regarded among the second tier of right fielders, Kieffer has regressed to nothing more than a middle of the pack player. He looks good on paper, and he looks good in practice, but when it comes to game time, everything just goes to hell. There’s still a lot of potential for production, but we may see him being rotated out of the lineup more often than before.

Backup: Rachid Legay
2034 Stats: .274/.301/.425, 13 HR, 25 doubles, 9 triples, 57 RBI, 21 SB, 3.7 WAR
With no clear cut backup option and with the recent regression of Kieffer, it was clear that the Padres needed a solid 4th outfielder. Legay appears to fit the bill for that role. He’s a .261 career hitter that has hit over .270 in 3 of the last 5 seasons. He’s also managed 3+ WAR in each of the last two seasons. With enough talent around him, he could probably keep his production up, but I just don’t see enough talent in him to break into our starting lineup. He’s most likely going to be used in some sort of platoon situation with Kieffer.

Starting Pitchers

Gustavo Spotelli
2034 Stats: 17-7, 2.80 ERA, 237.2 IP, 218 K, 1.01 WHIP, 4.7 WAR
Spotelli once again enters the season as the Padres’ ace. Despite a bounce back year last season, Spotelli has fallen out of the top 10 pitchers in the league according to the experts. There’s no doubt that he’s still ace material, but he has shown the first signs of aging – he can still bring the heat and top 100 MPH, but a few of his breaking pitches don’t quite have the break that they used to.

Raul Barosio
2034 Stats: 11-6, 3.09 ERA, 198.0 IP, 141 K, 1.02 WHIP, 3.2 WAR
A return to San Diego has done wonders for the 33 year old righty. 2034 was his best season since he was traded by the club after the 2030 season. In fact, with the exception of his win total, his numbers were almost exactly the same as that season. The best part of this for the Padres is that they are getting that same production out of Barosio, but now for $6 million cheaper.

Cesar Silva
2034 Stats: 5-8, 4.36 ERA, 142.1 IP, 107 K, 1.29 WHIP, 0.5 WAR
The Padres have found great success in recent years with bringing veteran pitchers into the rotation. Silva is our latest experiment. 2034 was Silva’s first season as a starter, and well, it wasn’t amazing by any stretch of the imagination. However, when I look at how he’s performed over the course of his career, I see a guy that has the potential to excel in our ballpark and with our defense behind him. Prior to last season he had posted consecutive seasons with a 1.00 WHIP, and in 3 of the last 4 years he’s had a sub 3 ERA. I’m not expecting him to be a star, but I think that he can be a very respectable mid-rotation starter for us.

Antonio Mendoza
2034 Stats: 14-10, 3.02 ERA, 196.2 IP, 143 K, 1.13 WHIP, 3.0 WAR
2034 was Mendoza’s best season as a pro. He set career bests in wins, ERA, BB/9, and WAR, and he tied his career best WHIP. Since becoming a starter, his strikeout numbers have been surprisingly low considering that he has such wicked stuff. He is certainly more effective coming out of the pen, but he’s one of those guys that’s just too good for a bullpen role. He’s not a top end starter, but he’s a serviceable mid to back-end rotation guy.

Cristo Gutierrez
2034 Stats: 79 G, 86.1 IP, 4.07 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 81 K, -0.03 WAR
He’s probably the biggest risk in our rotation. He’s a young guy that we’re going to take a chance on. On paper, he looks like a solid pitcher – great stuff, good control, and three plus pitches. However, he hasn’t been able to translate those skills into success in the big leagues so far. Still, he’s just 25 and has time to figure it out. We’re giving him a shot, but don’t be surprised if he ends up back in the bullpen at some point.

Relievers

Middle Relief: Tadaaki Maeda
2034 Stats: 64 G, 59.0 IP, 4.42 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 58 K, 0.9 WAR
Maeda is the lone lefty in the pen. After a stellar 2033 season as a reliever, Maeda followed things up with an unimpressive 2034 season. He’ll be looking to bounce back this season. He’s still got good stuff with three good pitches. If Gutierrez struggles, we could see Maeda jump back into the starting rotation.

Middle Relief: Dave Ling
2034 Stats: 77 G, 93.2 IP, 3.65 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 61 K, 0.3 WAR
Ling began his career as one of the most dominant relievers in the league. For the first 5 years of his career, he was able to come in late in games and absolutely shut down a lineup. However, since then, he has not been able to replicate that success on a consistent basis. He followed a less than impressive season with us in 2033 with an improved effort in Colorado in 2034. Hopefully this improvement is a sign of things to come. If he can get close to the pitcher he once was, he might end up as the best pickup we made this offseason. If not, then he might be looking for a new place to live come the trade deadline.

Middle Relief: Edwin Harvey
2034 Stats: 22 G, 25.0 IP, 6.12 ERA, 1.64 WHIP, 21 K, -0.4 WAR
Harvey did not have much success in 2034. He’s had some growing pains, and maybe we’re throwing him into the fire too quickly, but he’s a young arm with a lot of potential. Plus, plus stuff, good movement, good control, and 2 stellar pitches. He had a good spring, so we’re hoping that he’s ready to take that next step and put everything together.

Middle Relief: Jonathon Gardner
2034 Stats: 30 G, 42.0 IP, 3.43 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 50 K, 1.0 WAR
Gardner is another young arm that will inevitably go through some growing pain. He’s got a lot of potential, but we’re still waiting to see if he reaches it. He’s got wicked stuff, but his pitches come in flat a little more often than you’d like. He’s got ok control, that should get better, and he’s got 2 plus, plus pitches. He should eventually be a solid reliever.

Setup: Juan Diaz
2034 Stats: 69 G, 95.2 IP, 2.63 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 91 K, 0.9 WAR
Diaz has had some decent success with us since being picked up as a Rule 5 draftee, and he appears to have figured things out. He’s a hard thrower with fantastic stuff, good movement, and good control on all of his pitches. He’ll be stepping into a new role in 2035, so we’ll be keeping a close eye on him to see how he adjusts.

Setup: Kevin Lee
2034 Stats: 89 G, 88.1 IP, 2.65 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 92 K, 1.6 WHIP
Lee enters 2035 rated as the best reliever in baseball by the experts. It’s a bit surprising since he has started to show the first signs of aging. He has been our best and most consistent reliever since entering the league, and we’re expecting much of the same out of him this season. His stuff doesn’t look quite as good as it used to, and his pitches have lost a little bite, but the man knows how to pitch, so he should still be able to find success. He’s a veteran presence and a leader in the clubhouse, so we’ll take our chances with him.

Closer: David Gonzalez
2034 Stats: 40 SV, 74 G, 83.2 IP, 3.33 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 89 K, 0.9 WAR
There was a lot to like about Gonzalez’s sophomore season, and a few things that we’ll certainly be watching going forward. The good – you can’t complain too much when your closer reaches 40 saves, and his strikeout numbers were very good. The bad – 5 blown saves and 8 losses, he was much more wild than we expected, and when hitters got their bat on the ball, it often fell in for a hit (.345 BABIP). It was only his second season as a closer, so we’re aren’t incredibly concerned about him just yet. However, we will be keeping an eye on him. He looks like he could be a dominant closer going forward, so we’re excited about his future.