Padres GM A.J. Preller has a lot riding on his hand-picked roster, particularly with the team now having made a huge commitment to Manny Machado, and he laid out his belief in the club not long after announcing the Machado deal. As Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports, the top San Diego baseball decisionmaker turned in a fiery locker-room speech that seems to have made quite an impression on the players. It was a rare address for Preller, who sent the message that this group was compiled with winning intentions. There’s no shortage of interesting storylines to watch in San Diego — Machado’s impact, remaining roster needs, camp battles, prospect timelines — some of which may well carry into the regular season.
More from out west …
- It’d be a convenient narrative to see the Dodgers’ late-breaking pursuit of Bryce Harper as something of a response to their division rivals to the south, but there’s really no reason to believe that’s much of a factor. Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times examines what might actually be driving the Los Angeles powerhouse, suggesting that the foray into the superstar’s market may just be an attempt to see if Harper “is open to striking a deal on their terms — and their terms only.” Hernandez argues that the Dodgers should be willing “to create exceptions to their analytically dictated rules” in situations like these, but casts ample doubt as to whether the organization will in fact do so.
- Elsewhere in the greater Los Angeles region, the city of Long Beach, California appears to be making a play to woo the Angels, according to a report from Jason Ruiz of the Long Beach Post. Details are scant at the moment, but it seems the pitch involves a waterfront ballpark lot. Long Beach mayor Robert Garcia acknowledged having “approached the Angels” to open a dialogue on a possible move. Long Beach has a history with the Halos, including some serious dalliances in the past. For the time being, the club is still under contract to remain in Anaheim through at least 2020. Long-term talks to stay in Angels Stadium are ongoing, with some recent warming of relations but plenty of uncertainty overall.
- While a spring outing won’t be mistaken for the real thing, it was nevertheless fascinating to observe how MLB newcomer Yusei Kikuchi fared in his first game appearance in Mariners duds. As Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports, the initial showing was fairly impressive. Kikuchi managed to induce a ghastly swinging strikeout from none other than Joey Votto, who afterward praised the “potential” (and relative rarity) of Kikuchi’s “very good” and “very surprising” curve. Seattle manager Scott Servais felt his new workhorse “was outstanding for the first time out there.” The M’s committed at least four years and $56MM to Kikuchi, a significant outlay for a club that spent the winter focusing on the near-future (2020 and beyond) rather than the immediate future (the coming season). His ability to translate his success in Japan’s top league to the majors will factor heavily into the Seattle organization’s ability to rebound quickly into full competitiveness.
xabial
Give Preller credit for convincing owners to drop $300M.
padreforlife
Gets credit if Machado turns out to be good and Padres win
socalblake
I think the Dodgers, if they were to spend big money, should wait for Arenado to be a FA.
xabial
Thank you for saying big money, not “stupid money”
HalosHeavenJJ
Yeah, I don’t see outfield as a huge need for your squad. Especially not one whose defense can lapse in ballparks the size of the West.
123redsox
Lol. Turner is terrific, will be cheaper than Arenado and look at Arenado ‘s splits at Coors Field vs away. Clearly a product of playing half the season at Coors. No doubt he stays in Colorado
its_happening
^Yep
exile
Manny Machado just got a $300 million 10 year contract and his road splits were about the same as Arenado. Arenado will get paid a lot of money, around 30M AV.
Turner is a great player but he is 34 and getting older. He will likely decline in the near future while Nolan is in his prime. Arenado also grew up a Dodgers fan so he may want to sign there as a free agent.
smytds
Turner is getting older!? Where are all the free agents that are getting younger, that’s what I’d like to know…
opranger
Really? The Dodgers already have a third baseman!
awall
Looks like that’s not an option anymore.
socalblake
Yeah I think the Rockies saw that writing on the wall early.
awall
Dodgers will never spend money on these types of FA’s. They’re not in on any of the future FA’s. Not Trout, or anyone. It’s just speculation. They’re cheaping out
SFGiantsGallore
Guess not on this one
SFGiantsGallore
Just sign with Giants already and get it over Bryce
kenleyfornia2
Its Dodgers or Phillies.
xabial
You forgot the “mystery team”
thomps07
Why would he want to hit in the worst ballpark for lefty power hitters?
afenton530
why did bonds?
Rexster1985
Bonds was already with Giants.
ChiSox_Fan
White Sox!
Dodgethis
PacBell Park was designed for Barry Bonds. There is a reason he’s the only one that could routinely hit the bay. Harper has the best shot of anyone to be successful in what is now Oracle park.
jbigz12
Bonds also had enough juice running through his veins to kill a small army. Harper might be the closest LH power bat to him but he’s not like that.
Nnnjjjjjhhjj
The dimensions down the right field line for the Giants is actually illegal because it’s so short and they got a waiver from MLB to okay it. I’d say Bobblehead Barry was helped quite a bit by that short porch.
Yep it is
Preller a different direction every year. Never will be successful
Wolverines2
Incorrect about the first part. Time will tell about the second.
max57
Wrong. After year one, it has been the same direction, build the farm. He did it through trades, draft, and int’l. Last year he signed his leader (Hosmer). This year he added talent (Machado) without giving up prospects or a draft pick. His direction has been building for the future since his 2nd season. He’s right on path.
Swinging Friars
And so far so good!
imindless
4th place every year is good?
carlpagano
6 and 14 in the World Series is good, and no titles in 31 years?
Comrade Tipsy McStagger
Yeah, but how many pushups can you do Carl?
max57
Just like Astros and Cubs built. Yeah, it takes time. Unless you’re Yankees or Dodgers, you can’t spend money and flip your team overnight.
marijuasher
Actually, considering how much TV money all the teams get, any team can spend money and flip their fortunes overnight.
Owners have to want to do it, though.
DadsInDaniaBeach
@marijuasher….exactly…100% of the teams can do it..If they choose
Wolverines2
Did you sit around and criticize the Astros when they were terrible? The Royals?
Swinging Friars
They can try, but in practice it isn’t that simple. Just ask Preller about 2015
It really does not happen overnight. Chemistry plays a big roll
I am curious though….Do we have an example of a team that has been successful using this strategy? Not just adding a couple pieces over an offseason, but totally reshaping the team like the 2015 Padres. Has it actually turned into a championship before? Or even the playoffs?
HalosHeavenJJ
There’s no way that lot is feasible for the Angels. 13 acres with very limited access just doesn’t work in an area devoid of significant light rail.
ryanw-2
FYI, AT&T Park is built on 12.5 acres.
adshadbolt1
Yea and at&t has no parking available and is a few blocks from the nearest Bart stop( Bart is the Bay Area subway)
Dodgethis
Lots of parking at the pier. Never a shortage.
Swinging Friars
You want to talk no parking? Petco Park has one small 4 story parking garage and a lot for about 20 tailgaters
And then there are the police walking up and down while you sit in traffic, looking for anyone who had an overpriced beer.. Or catch the train by 11, so long as where you need to go is north coastal
Koamalu
There are over 7k parking spots in the East Village and Gaslamp. Plus the trolley runs from most of the county and drops you off across the street from Petco.
Swinging Friars
7k? hmmmmm
As for parking in the gaslamp…what a joke. You must have never tried to park downtown before, definitely not on a game night. You show up to downtown during happy hour in a bar district. Good luck. Or maybe you think the $45 outdoor lots where hobo’s are leaning up on your car is a good value??
35k+ capacity and you are ok with 7k? You do realise it would take every car holding at least 5 people for this to be close to enough right?
That parking structure is tiny.
Swinging Friars
Also, the trolly is done before the end of the game. The coaster waits an extra 30 minutes or so. They give you till 11:00pm to get on
Petco isn’t hard to get in and out of. But it is far from ideal. They need more parking and it needs to be cheaper. Public transportation staying open would be a huge help too
Right now you can trolly along the 8 and coaster along the 5. With only 2 tops off of the 5 (encinitas and oceanside) and just a handful off of the 8. No one uses it because it doesn’t help anyone. Unless you are staying in hotel circle and can get to the trolly by 10 (yes the trolly stops much earlier than the coaster)
padreforlife
There was isn’t much parking. They built multi story high rise building right across street. There is nothing unless you want to get stuck in multi story garage. It’s total $ grab
Koamalu
Oracle Park itself is built on 12.5 acres, but more than 40 acres of the surrounding area is largely owned or controlled by the team and the park was privately financed and is now free and clear.
IronBallsMcGinty
Whatever they do, they should change back to the California Angels.
HalosHeavenJJ
California name was long after playing in LA six decades before the Dodgers, but I like it better too.
Swinging Friars
How far south does L.A. go??
HalosHeavenJJ
The line dividing LA and Orange counties is a river that runs south of Long Beach.
Wolverines2
Long Beach probably closer to LA than Anaheim in terms if distance and driving time.
HalosHeavenJJ
The Angels almost moved from LA to Long Beach instead of Anaheim but Gene Autry wanted to use the name California and Long Beach insisted on the city name.
So, new ballpark surrounded by orange groves it was.
socalbball
Yes, Autry insisted on being able to use either “California” or “Los Angeles” in the name for marketing purposes, The City of Long Beach insisted that since it was providing the land and money to build a stadium, the team should have “Long Beach” in the name. Guess nobody thought of the California Angels of Long Beach!
Grizalt
Once you get past Buena Park (the city Knotts Berry Farm is in) you are in LA.
James1955
Light rail doesn’t take you everywhere. 2/3 of the customers at AT&T and the Oakland Coliseum get there by car.
HalosHeavenJJ
done that trip from Sacramento. At least it’s right there off the bay bridge.
This spot in LB is a long way from any artery to the east or south. It’s either loop around the city to the 710 or surface streets for miles.
agentx
The 710 is a major interstate that runs right into the half mile or so of the speedway-style Shoreline Drive that’s wide and fast enough to serve as the backbone of the Long Beach Grand Prix race course and leads directly to the stadium site.
Transportation to and from the Long Beach site would not be any more problematic than the increasingly traffic-choked freeways surrounding the Big A.
Long Beach faces long odds because it lacks the corporate presence necessary to maximize corporate suite and sponsorship revenues like the Angels could with a new stadium in Anaheim or some other part of Orange County.
OrelSax
If they want to build a stadium more in this direction (LB), they should grab some of that government land around Seal Beach and build it there. GREAT access to multiple freeways.
HalosHeavenJJ
The problem is that all of the residents of OC or the IE would need to go north on the hellish 405 in order to loop back south on the 710 to get to Shoreline Drive.
Or, we can take surface streets for a few miles. Streets that are already congested.
Getting 40k per night to that location will be tough. I like that area, I bike up there often, but rarely drive there because it is so inconvenient coming from HB.
agentx
Devoid of significant light rail? A major light rail line that has connected downtown Los Angeles and downtown Long Beach and carried tens of thousands of passengers per day between the cities for over 20 years now has one stop three blocks from the proposed site and a second five blocks away.
That very same light rail line is currently undergoing a complete six-month overhaul that will cut its estimated travel time between Los Angeles and Long Beach to approximately 40 minutes.
OrelSax
Yeah, but the Blue Line connects Long Beach with points north, which is Dodger country.
I live in Long Beach. The Shoreline Village area would be a horrible idea. Now, it would be a BOMB spot for a baseball stadium, if transportation and access weren’t a factor, but it is.
Most OC fans would take SR22 which turns into 7th Street. That means they’d have to drive across the entire length of the city on surface streets. Fans from the north would use I710, and just imagine game day traffic there, on a THREE LANE freeway, mingling in with all of the truck traffic from the port. It’s just not going to work unless there were really huge changes made to the access infrastructure.
OrelSax
Oh, and I forgot the worst part of this idea… IT’S THE WRONG TEAM! :p
retire21
Ventura Highway in the sunshine.
Devin, what are you doing here?
HalosHeavenJJ
This. I’m an OC resident, like most of the team’s fans. There’s no train we can take, we’d all cut across 7th street or take PCH to 2nd. Neither is fun.
I’d chuck my ticket plan because weeknight games just wouldn’t be worth the hassle.
Dodgertown76
@ Giants gallore Yes please Bryce go from a team that couldn’t get out of the 1st round year after year to a team that is gonna be jockeying with the Dbacks for last place. That will show how badly Bryce wants to win.
Dodgethis
Or he could sign with Dodgers, and never win again. Choke artist losers.
Dodgertown76
More titles than SF still. Don’t be mad you haven’t come out yet? Head on back to the Castro now.
Dodgertown76
I actually applaud Fowler for ponying up the money for one of the best players in the game. That poor city doesn’t have a nba team and lost their football team.
marinerfan
Go YK!
harpchado
Padres will not let LA sign him. Let him rot in SF, but if LA is a real player, I doubt AJ lets him go there..
Swinging Friars
When have the Padres ever signed a player just to block them from LA? or any team
san diego4life
They once claimed randy Myers to keep him away from the Braves .
Swinging Friars
nice exception!
pretty good bbq too
Dodgertown76
@SocalBlake the Dodgers have roughly 67 mill coming off the books after the season so essentially they could get Harper now and Arenado next season.
Backup Catcher to the Backup Catcher
Yeah, I thought the Phillies might do the same thing this year and sign both Manny and Harper. We had the “stupid” money to do that. Now it looks like my Phillies, if they lose out on Harper, will end up with neither player. Big PR black eye for our owner, Cigar Guy.
Dodgertown76
@harpchado they’re (Dodgers) have to be serious for all of their brass including Roberts to fly to Vegas last night to “hang out” with Bryce
Ace of Diamonds
Lots of reason to visit Vegas. it’s not Winnemucka or Chernobyl for god’s sake…
KF
“There’s really no reason to believe that’s much of a factor” something you might say in casual parlance, but looks awful written. How about just “There’s no reason to believe that’s a factor” or better yet “that’s not a factor”. Get to the point.
Jeff Todd
“Really” is perhaps superfluous. Otherwise, you seem to think I know more than I do about the thoughts of the Dodgers’ decisionmakers.
johnrealtime
I wonder if guys like this used to write letters to newspapers to say that a word written in an article is probably unnecessary or if it is just an internet thing
LADreamin
KF has important things to do. He can’t possibly waste half a second of his time reading an extra word. He needs all the time he can get to write his complaints in the comments. And also to spend being a generally awful human being.
James1955
The Dodgers aren’t going to give Harper very much money. He is not playing for the Dodgers.The Phillies is he wants the money. The Giants if he wants to play close to home and he doesn’t want to play for the Phillies.
14thor
The Dodgers have nothing to lose by gauging Harper’s interest in a “short-term” contract on their terms while Boras can theoretically use the Dodgers’ interest in Harper to shake more money out of the Phillies. I’d be shocked if Harper signed with LA. It would probably be for 5-7 years around $200-230 million with multiple opt out clauses. Unlikely.
User 4245925809
What’s the difference exactly in state income tax between Philly and California? Wouldn’t it cost him more dollars to sign with any team there vs about any (sans NJ/NY) in the East? My thoughts, maybe incorrect were only those 2 approached California for the rate of state income tax and with the new tax rules, where cannot deduct nearly as much state as previously, it would cost more it seems.
SFGiants74
If Harpers only concern were the tax code then he should sign in Korea. His value goes down every day.
Cat Mando
johnsilver…………..
This is from Dec. 2018
si.com/mlb/2018/12/10/bryce-harper-manny-machado-r…
One of the co-authors is Robert Raiola, CPA who goes by SportsTaxMan on Twitter. After Manny signed with SD he Tweeted “$158M = Approximate $ Manny Machado will net after Federal, State and Payroll taxes.”
twitter.com/SportsTaxMan/status/109895753821575987…
Rexster1985
Harper signs with Dodgers for 3 years, that is the realistic window for a ring. Not sure exact times but I believe that is hat Jensen, Turner, and Kershaw have left on their contracts. Going further than the 3 years makes no sense..he gets his 3 yr 90 mill contract and than he signs with Phillies or another real contender.
Priggs89
I don’t see any way that $30M/yr is enough money to get him on a 3 year deal.
SFGiants74
The Dodgers were supposed to win it all when they acquired Adrien Gonzalez…And every year since…
Koamalu
Boras has undoubtedly already told the Dodgers and every other interested team exactly what Harper wants and what the team will have to beat in order to have their offer considered. We know that Harper has turned down at least 2 10/300+ offers because the Nationals have confirmed that they gave him a 10/300 offer in September and increased the offer in December.
If they were going to make a “short-term” offer, the time was early in the process and we know that type of deal was shot down months ago.
To then go in and make a low ball offer would be extremely insulting, not to mention wasting the time of not only Harper and Boras, but also of Friedman and the rest of the group that went to meet with Harper and Boras.
You can be sure that Boras would not forget something like that and would steer his clients clear of the Dodgers after that. Considering how many of the top players in baseball he represents that would hurt a large budget team like the Dodgers more than most teams.
I find it insulting that someone would think that we are so stupid that we would believe that the Dodgers would do something incredibly stupid like that.
CursedRangers
Considering the dozen or so unsigned players Boras has at the moment, it seems as if he is steering his clients clear of all the MLB teams.
Dodgertown76
@James1955 how much is LA offering?? forgot Olney & Rosenthal good old James1555 has all the scoop
Dodgertown76
@14thor Preech my man preech. Good post
Xavier Blaine
Might be an unpopular opinion among my fellow dodger fans, but I really like the outfield we have now. I think all we need is a back end starter and we wait for the trade deadline to make the bigger moves.
corey5kersh22
Pederson/Taylor, Pollack/Bellinger, Verdugo/kike outfield is pretty good. But I think a Bellinger/Pollack/Harper outfield is just scary.
Grizalt
But would the money Harper would inevitably cost not be better spent on starting pitching? Or maybe wait a year and spend it on Nolan Arenado to take Justin Turner’s (who is 34 and will be one year out from free agency next offseason) place at 3rd?
Dustin27
Back end starter? Urias,stripling,Ferguson,Maeda,Ryu are pretty good back end starters
Matt Ragusa
Phillies need to end this.
VegasSDfan
Dodgers are heading towards the bottom.
Harper is asking SD to sign him.
Crazy times.
sheff86
OMG please build a new stadium for the Angels. They play in a dump.
In N Out concessions the place would sell out.
SillyBilly
Yep it’s dumpy, but most Halo fans don’t see the inside what the cameras don’t show.
Swinging Friars
Should be interesting. Long Beach sounds a lot better than Riverside. Kind of crazy to think of them leaving Anaheim
GeoKaplan
Doubtful the Angels leave Anaheim, but an opportunity in LB gives some negotiation leverage to the team.
Old Mayor and City Council wasn’t about making a deal for the long-term relationship with the team, and now the city finds a ticking timer, running out in just a few years. It is easier for Moreno to stay put in exchange for financial stake in a development of city land around the stadium, but the reluctance to build a parking structure to replace the large lot is understandable.
Still, both Anaheim and Moreno could make a ton of money through developing the extended land parcel around the stadium. Doubtful LB could match that, since the lot location suggested in LB is Tidelands area and requires approval of California Coastal Commission to do anything.
captainsalty
It’s crazy how many obnoxious Padres fans have come out of the wood work since they signed Machado…it was much more pleasant around here before with the Padres fans that have common baseball knowledge
Swinging Friars
At least your handle is right
kenleyfornia2
They were being obnoxious long before Machado. We might as well crown them 2021 champions. They claim its a guarentee
GeoKaplan
Depends. Is 2021 the next season Hosmer will hit like a MLB-grade player?
Padres2019ha
Padres fans obnoxious? Hahaha pleeeease. Ever met a Giants or Doyer fan? And we’ve paid our dues to finally be obnoxious, thanks
Dodgertown76
@vegassdfan the Dodgers are heading towards the bottom?? So like where the Padres have been for over a decade? Do us all a favor and go play in the street.
Koamalu
The Dodgers have undoubtedly talked to Boras other times and know exactly what Harper is asking for in terms of years and dollars. For someone to try to say that the President, GM and several unnamed others took time out of spring training and went to Las Vegas in order to low ball him is an insult to our intelligence. The Dodgers went and made an offer at least close to the offers that they know Harper has on the table. If not, they would not have gone and met with him and Boras in person. Why do we constantly read these flat out lies on here?
OrelSax
Yeah, I’d be really surprised if the Dodgers moved on him. Of all of the potential holes the Dodgers might have, are LH outfielders one of them?
The only thing I could surmise that might make something here possible would be to give the long term contract, but play some games with front loading and add in some creative option language? And if they were to sign Harper, I’d surmise it would be pretty obvious that another trade after that would probably be in the works…. and if the Dodgers FO didn’t have that worked out in advance, they wouldn’t tip the first domino.
A lot of holes in the swiss cheese would have to align to make the Dodgers a fit?
Dodgertown76
@Koamalu let’s give this guy credit for the best post on this topic. I couldn’t have said it any better.
kenleyfornia2
There is a reply button
bjupton100
Dodgers she’d two outfielders already making around 30 million. I know they took on money also but that should open a spot if needed. The Dodgers need to make a trade for KK now before he starts out on fire and the Rays can’t hardly let him go for a reasonable price.
Melchez
I enjoy this drama with Harper and Machado. It made the offseasons interesting. It seems mlbtr is always eager to be ahead of the story. They seem very confident in their predictions and most of the time they look silly. But that doesn’t stop them from predicting.
“We should know by Monday where Harper will be going…”
I hope Kimbrel doesn’t sit out 2019.
Yankees could sign machado… harper…. corbin… and or any of the top free agents. Other teams might also… but the Yankees might. The Yankees might trade a player. The Yankees might not trade a player. The Yankees might hire someone to do something.
cscd1111
Let’s try this again,hum,is today the day when Bryce Harper signs with the Phillies. And is a deal already close enough for the hold up. To be opt out clauses, stay tuned ladies and gentlemen this long ride is nearly over.
padreforlife
Preller doing a Knute Rockne impression.Stick to geeking out and switching medical records.
macstruts
I don’t care where the Angels play, as long as it’s So. Cal and as long as it’s there with Mike Trout.
SillyBilly
If the Halos move to Longo, Arte can keep his LAA logo
Halos2021WSChamps
Good luck parking in Long Beach geezo
BenjiB24
Kikuchi is great. A real treat to watch. He hides the ball so well when he pitches. “his success in Japan’s top league to the majors will factor heavily into the Seattle organization’s ability to rebound quickly into full competitiveness”. True to some extend, but dont let it go to your head. I dont think the Mariners’ season is riding on Kikuchi. The Mariners are flooded with young MLB ready talent. Marco is an excellent pitcher and a true Bulldog. Sheffield has the presence of a polished vet. Ya, we goin’ be just fine
GarryHarris
What am I missing?.
The Padres don’t have much pitching. I like SPL Joey Lucchesi and RPL Matt Strahm. After that, I don’t see quality pitching.
csspackler
Wait till you see Chris Paddack.
padreforlife
Preller the 92 games under GM
padreforlife
Preller giving rah rah speech hard to believe