3 negligent San Diego Padres offseason decisions the team is paying for right now

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If the saying goes "you get what you pay for," then it's fair to say that the San Diego Padres haven't exactly made that a truism in 2023.

The team has largely underachieved this season despite major acquisitions to their roster last winter, and some of those spending decisions have looked less than stellar in retrospect. Let's analyze three of these manuevers (or lack thereof) by A.J. Preller and the Padres' front office that have racked up a negative cost benefit through mid-June.

1) The San Diego Padres' over-aggressiveness with the Yu Darvish extension

The Padres sent shockwaves across the baseball landscape (yet again) when they decided to hand 36-year-old righty Yu Darvish a six-year, $108 million extension just before the start of this season. This new contract will take the Japanese pitcher through his age-42 season.

Committing that many years and dollars to an already veteran starter seemed like an inherent risk, but now looks even worse in mid-June, as Darvish's season ERA has inflated to 4.74 over 13 starts coming off his latest dud against the Tampa Bay Rays. That's not the type of production owner Peter Seidler is paying for, to say the least.

Darvish must improve, and fast, if he is to make this extension worthwhile for the Padres. And given Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander's lack of overall success this season since each were paid by the New York Mets and Steve Cohen, this doesn't appear promising for the Padres and Yu Darvish.

May 17, 2023; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres designated hitter Matt Carpenter (14) is / Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

2) The Padres signing both Matt Carpenter and Nelson Cruz has proven negligent

The Padres made a significant enhancement to their lineup in the winter, signing shortstop Xander Bogaerts to pair with Manny Machado, Juan Soto and Fernando Tatis Jr. And while that fearsome foursome hasn't quite come together as planned to this point, it appears A.J. Preller neglected his designated hitter (DH) spot in 2023.

Bringing in Matt Carpenter and Nelson Cruz to form a DH platoon has turned out as patchwork as you'd expect. Neither player has an OPS over .700 and the soon-to-be 43-year-old Cruz has spent time on the shelf already this season, leaving a hole on his side of the platoon. Carpenter is rendered irrelevant against left-handers, so his role is also somewhat limited on the team.

Having two aging DHs on the roster when the Padres could've just had one better overall player, or heck, even two better players, has undoubtedly cost San Diego at times in 2023. This isn't the the kind of depth you need to sustain over a long season.

Apr 13, 2023; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado (left) / Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

3) The Padres neglected to build a deep roster, opting for top-heavy star power instead

San Diego saw the opportunity to build a "super team" and certainly went for it. But how has that worked out? Not so great.

Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts have each been injured. Juan Soto scuffled out of the gate. Fernando Tatis Jr. was suspended. On the pitching side? Reliever Robert Suarez is out of commission, while ace Joe Musgrove was banged up himself, then returned and struggled (though he's been better of late), and now has an elbow issue. Seth Lugo has also been sidetracked with an injury, as has Drew Pomeranz.

These are all issues that can affect even the most well-constructed teams, and the Padres have seen the gauntlet. But with the season being a marathon and not a sprint, that only emphasizes the importance of having quality depth to lean on in situations like these.

You can build what many were calling the best lineup in baseball, with tons of star power. However, that's all for nothing if these players can't stay healthy, and in turn, the team lacks adequate depth to replace their presences. The best teams have great players and solid depth around and behind those talents for when obstacles arise.

It's clear the Padres didn't focus as much on depth as they should've when constructing this top-heavy roster, and this has shown through on multiple occasions in 2023.

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