Christian Villanueva Fine After Cutting Arm

San Diego Padres third baseman Christian Villanueva (arm) is fine after cutting his non-throwing arm. He missed Sunday's game but is expected back on Monday. Villanueva has hit well this spring, going 10-for-26 (.385) with three home runs and 11 RBI. If he makes the team, Villanueva will back up third baseman Chase Headley but […]

Chris Young Shines, Luis Perdomo Stumbles Again

Two San Diego Padres pitchers contending for starting gigs are moving in opposite directions. Starting Sunday, pitcher Luis Perdomo scuffled, allowing five earned runs and a 3.00 WHIP in three innings against the San Francisco Giants. Coming in relief, pitcher Chris Young fired four innings of shutout ball, retiring five via strikeout. Perdomo's edge heading […]

Leading Indicators - First Pitch Strikes and Strikeout Risers

Conventional baseball wisdom harps on the importance of the first-pitch strike (F-strike%). As pitchers get ahead in counts, they gain an advantage on hitters and have more pitch choices at their disposal. However, smart people discovered a hitter's average with a 0-1 count (.321) is only marginally worse than a 1-0 count (.337). The pitch […]

Jose Pirela Assured A Roster Spot

San Diego Padres manager Andy Green all but confirmed outfielder Jose Pirela's roster spot after Sunday's spring training loss to the San Francisco Giants. Getting the start at second base, Pirela went 2-for-3 with a homer and is now hitting .481 with a 1.448 OPS in 27 spring at-bats. Pirela, who Green quoted as "one […]

Clayton Richard Expected To Start Opening Day

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Clayton Richard turned in his best spring tune-up on Friday, hurling four innings of shutout ball with one strikeout. Although Padres manager Andy Green wouldn't confirm, the calendar aligns Friday's start with Opening Day. Richard is widely expected to get the ball against the Milwaukee Brewers to start the season. […]

Alex Dickerson Opts For Rehab Over Surgery

San Diego Padres outfielder Alex Dickerson (elbow) will attempt to rehab his sprained UCL instead of opting for Tommy John surgery. While the former will keep him out through at least April, the latter would've ended his season before it started. Surgery is still on the table if he doesn't show improvement. Steamrolled by injuries […]

Travis Jankowski Cranks Two Homers

San Diego Padres outfielder Travis Jankowski went yard twice on Saturday against the Indians. Prior to Saturday's eruption, Jankowski was hitting .182 and on the outside looking in at a competitive San Diego outfield. Jankowski, 26, has played sporadically in three seasons with the Padres but did steal 30 bases in 2016. While his speed […]

Bryan Mitchell Comfortable As A Starter

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Bryan Mitchell will open 2018 as the team's No. 2 starter. Mitchell, acquired with third baseman Chase Headley during the offseason, was believed to be San Diego's real target in the transaction. At 26, Mitchell hasn't shown he belongs in the majors (4.94 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, 5.86 K/9 through 98 1/3 […]

Chase Headley Focuses On Natural Swing

San Diego Padres third baseman Chase Headley hopes a few mechanical adjustments in his swing will allow him to surpass his recent unexceptional performance. Since a magical 2012 season when he hit 31 home runs, scored 95 runs and drove in 115 RBI (along with 17 steals and an .874 OPS), Headley has settled for […]

Christian Villanueva Adding First Base To His Resume

San Diego Padres third baseman Christian Villanueva will play first base Friday as he fights for a roster spot. The Padres third baseman was also recently linked to taking repetitions at shortstop. His versatility could supplement a bat that's hitting .435 with three homers and 11 RBI in 23 spring at-bats (1.465 OPS). If he makes […]

Cubs Maul Jordan Lyles, Matt Strahm

Both fighting for starting spots, San Diego Padres pitchers Jordan Lyles and Matt Strahm were rocked in Thursday's spring training game against the Cubs. Lyles, who started, was pulled before he recorded an out in the second and gave up five earned runs. Strahm pitched a solid inning but struggled in his second. He left […]

Points League Primer - Fantasy Baseball Draft Strategy

When discussing fantasy baseball, an often neglected but entertaining format is the points league. These exist in both season-long cumulative and weekly head-to-head leagues. While existential debates about scoring categories and their true depiction of player worth are endless, points leagues arguably get closest to the objective of sabermetrics. Points leagues attempt to define a […]

Franchy Cordero Capitalizing On Opportunities

San Diego Padres outfielder Franchy Cordero is forcing his way into San Diego's roster discussions with a sizzling spring training. After a 1.052 OPS second half in Triple-A followed up by winning the Dominican Winter League MVP, Cordero is hitting .423 with two homers through 26 spring at-bats. His speed, rocket arm, ability to play […]

Padres Check In On Jake Arrieta

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports indicates through sources the San Diego Padres have internally discussed free-agent starting pitcher Jake Arrieta. This flies in the face of an ESPN article that identified San Diego was "not gonna happen" as Arrieta's landing spot. With a fairly weak and inexperienced starting rotation, the Padres could conceivably offer Arrieta […]

Carlos Asuaje And Cory Spangenberg Fighting For Roster Spot

San Diego Padres manager Andy Green hinted the loser of the second base battle between Carlos Asuaje and Cory Spangenberg may not make the final roster. Due to crowded outfield and pitching situations, the Padres likely do not have room for two left-handed hitting second basemen. Additionally, right-handed Jose Pirela, who can play outfield and […]

Chris Young Sharp, Luis Perdomo Struggles Against Royals

Two San Diego Padres competing for the starting rotation made their cases on Tuesday against the Royals. Pitcher Chris Young struck out four and allowed one earned run in three innings. Meanwhile, starter Luis Perdomo struggled in three innings, allowing two earned runs, but recorded five strikeouts. Young, a non-roster invitee, is a 38-year-old veteran with both […]

Alex Dickerson Diagnosed With UCL Sprain

Updating a previous report, San Diego Padres outfielder Alex Dickerson (elbow) has been diagnosed with a UCL sprain. Dickerson will weigh his options, including Tommy John surgery. He is expected to be out for at least six weeks if he tries rehab over surgery. His absence means one less Padre vying for the remaining starting […]

Alex Dickerson Out Through Opening Day

AJ Cassavell of MLB.com tweeted that San Diego Padres outfielder Alex Dickerson (elbow) is likely out through Opening Day. This is a tough setback for Dickerson, who missed all of 2017 to a back injury and was expected to vie for playing time. There is no timetable for the San Diego native's return. His absence […]

Dinelson Lamet Working On Secondary Pitches

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Dinelson Lamet is working on developing a curveball and changeup. Manager Andy Green is encouraging Lamet to grow comfortable mixing in other pitches to complement his power fastball-slider profile. Making his debut last season, Lamet registered a 10.94 K/9 in 21 starts. While impressive, his limited repertoire resulted in inconsistency […]

ADP Rankings Debate - Andrew Benintendi vs. Marcell Ozuna

RotoBallers Andrew Le and Sean Scampton recently did their best Celebrity Deathmatch impression by debating between Andrew Benintendi (Andrew) and Marcell Ozuna (Sean). Interestingly, Benintendi and Ozuna face an odd occurrence where one player has the ADP advantage while the other is being ranked higher overall and at their position. As always, arguments about players […]

Colin Rea Shut Down With Shoulder Pain

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Colin Rea (elbow, shoulder) is being temporarily shut down after experiencing shoulder pain. This is a tough setback for Rea, who missed all of 2017 recovering from Tommy John Surgery. Rea's absence will jeopardize his shot as a starter. His injury likely leaves seven Padres pitchers vying for three rotation […]

Joe Panik (2B, SF) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~295 CURRENT ADP: 385 ANALYSIS: Over the past two seasons, Joe Panik has put up eerily similar numbers, averaging 10 homers, 64 runs and 58 RBI. The only fluctuation was his batting average, where an unlucky .245 BABIP in 2016 resulted in a significantly lower .239 BA versus his career .282. Now […]

Christian Villanueva Could Play Both Third and Shortstop

San Diego Padres third baseman Christian Villanueva wants to be the Padres primary third baseman. However, that role belongs to veteran Chase Headley. AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports San Diego will test Villanueva at shortstop to back up Freddy Galvis. There's no guarantee Headley will be with the Padres all season and versatility adds to […]

Robbie Erlin And Colin Rea Return To Game Action

After both players missed 2017 recovering from Tommy John Surgery, San Diego Padres starting pitchers Robbie Erlin (elbow) and Colin Rea (elbow) returned to live action in a "B" game on Thursday. They each pitched two innings and struck out a pair. Erlin and Rea are two of eight Padres pitchers battling for three rotation spots and could […]

Luis Urias' Callup Probably Sooner Than Later

San Diego Padres manager Andy Green offered glowing remarks about 20-year-old second baseman Luis Urias on Thursday. San Diego's No. 3 prospect is making a strong case to make the MLB Opening Day roster, pushing incumbents Carlos Asuaje and Cory Spangenberg. While logistics of team control will likely prevent him from making the squad outright, […]

Austin Hedges (C, SD) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~220 CURRENT ADP: 266 ANALYSIS: Regarded as a top-shelf defensive catcher, Austin Hedges bucked his one-sided reputation in 2017 by hitting 18 homeruns, tied eighth-best for signal-callers. Unfortunately, the power did not translate into other fantasy-useful categories. Hedges finished outside the top-20 for backstops with a meager 36 runs, 55 RBI and […]

Matt Strahm May Not Be Ready To Start

AJ Cassavell tweeted that San Diego Padres pitcher Matt Strahm may not be ready to start by Opening Day but can come out of the bullpen. Although he's competing for a back-end rotation spot, Strahm also projects to be a useful relief arm. Strahm is returning from a torn left patellar tendon suffered last July. […]

Austin Hedges Hits Third Spring Homer

San Diego Padres catcher Austin Hedges hit his third spring training home run on Wednesday against the Dodgers, sending a Wilmer Font pitch over the left field wall. Hedges has started red-hot, going 3-for-5 with a homer in each game played. The rate is unsustainable, but early returns are promising for Hedges, who changed his swing […]

Platoon Role For Hunter Renfroe Possible

San Diego Padres outfielder Hunter Renfroe will likely assume a platoon role in 2018. Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports on the ongoing battle in San Diego's outfield, pointing out Renfroe's struggles with righties (.636 OPS) and success against lefties (1.077 OPS). Manager Andy Green admitted injuries and lack of depth last season forced […]

Vince Velasquez (SP, PHI) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~280 CURRENT ADP: 363 ANALYSIS: Vincent Velasquez turned heads in 2016 when he posted a solid 10.44 K/9, satisfactory 4.12 ERA and 1.33 WHIP. Expected to leap forward, Velasquez face-planted in 2017 and regressed meaningfully. An August finger injury mercifully ended his season. Velasquez finished with a 2-7 record, 5.13 ERA and […]