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Padres News: Padres Makeover Not Just For Production, But Experience

By Billy Brost

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In less than one calendar year, the San Diego Padres went from an afterthought, to the darlings of the MLB off-season. On the surface, all of the moves Friars GM A.J. Preller made, was to drastically improve one of the historically bad offenses from last season. According to Corey Brock of MLB.com, the pure offensive firepower that has been added to the 2015 San Diego Padres, was only half of the equation as to why seven new faces will don the blue and gold, or brown and gold, or camo and whatever. 

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No, per Brock, A.J. Preller, Logan White, and the rest of the Padres had one other item on their mind as they assembled the new win-now roster: winning now. Matt Kemp, Derek Norris, Wil Myers, James Shields, Clint Barmes, and Justin Upton–all have been previously a part of a successful team, and all have been to October as postseason participants. While none own a World Series ring, that is something that each aims to change as early as 2015. Each new face has enjoyed a certain amount of success in October, highlighted by Shields, and his two World Series appearances in 2008 and 2014.

Preller told Brock on the topic: “It’s something we’ve talked about from a baseball ops standpoint, from a scouting standpoint…It’s something we stressed and we think that it’s important. It’s not a coincidence. We have a current group that is hungry to get there.”

The Padres haven’t seen October baseball since 2006, and Preller was hired to change all of that immediately. Ownership has opened the checkbook, and the farm system has provided the vital young talent to make the deals happen. How serious are the new-look Padres about making a positive impact on the rest of their teammates, and to help lead San Diego back to the World Series for the first time since 1998? Kemp, Barmes, Shields and Norris reported for Spring Training when pitchers and catchers reported. Not because they were told to, but because to be leaders, and to be winners, you lead by example, and that example began yesterday.

Next: Who Will Win The #5 Spot In The Padres Rotation?

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