The San Diego Padres make a trade. They send reliever Bob Melvin (ankle sprain) to the Oakland A’s for minor league reliever Ryan Cook. It’s not a big move by the Padres, but they’re getting closer to acquiring a frontline starting pitcher. Right-handed batters usually struggle with left-handers, so having Cook in their rotation can really help their setup.
For now, Melvin is a mediocre closer for the Padres. He has a 5.40 ERA in the season so far, although he pitched well against lefthanders earlier in the year. But he only throws a few pitches per inning, which is understandable. He has been known to give up home runs as well, but he is certainly not at risk of getting into an emergency. With a veteran batter already on the roster, the move certainly makes sense.
What’s interesting about this move, though, is the role Melvin will play for the A’s. He will be the designated batter, just like Francisco Peguero last year. However, he won’t be in the rotation like he was with the A’s last year. Instead, opt to play every day, although I wouldn’t count on too many home runs from him.
This move also means that the San Diego Padres will likely be without one of their better hitters: outfielders, such as Carlos Pena and Dido Hooba. Both players have been very prolific at the plate, but the team just doesn’t have options at the top of the lineup. Right now, the team is dealing with center fielders like James Jones and Nick Hagad whose skills have not translated to right field. Sure, there’s a good chance Pena or Hooba will break out, but it’s not a certainty. For now, the team is looking to find some hitters to replace those two.
In addition, the San Diego Padres also sign catcher Will Smith to a minor-league contract. Smith, who has mainly played at second base in recent seasons, can give the team much-needed backup to the position. Right now, the team is missing a real number 1 batter, and adding Smith to the lineup should improve things significantly. He has enough attacking skills to play in both corner and midfield, although he may need a year or two of development in Triple-A and then to develop into an everyday player.
The signing of Bob Melvin marks the first time the longtime Athletic director has decided to step down from his position as team manager. If you read Baseball Digest every morning, you’ll discover that the team desperately needs a manager. Obviously, the team needs someone to get them out of the doldrums they’re in right now, and hiring Bob Melvin gives that man just that.
While the San Diego Padres aren’t making big strides this off-season, they’re still expected to make some small ones. That means the balance of power stays where it is, which is somewhere in the blue area of the roster. At the moment, the team relies on several utility players, namely pitchers Chase Johnson and Matt Garza, to fill the outfield positions. Those two don’t produce more-than-average numbers every year, so the team probably plans to bring in a potent lineup full of bench players. Adding Bob Melvin to the group could help balance the lineup even more, giving the team some much-needed speed to an already powerful lineup.
Given all that has happened in recent years, it’s easy to see why the San Diego Padres were never seriously considered for a trade during the trading deadline. They had no real trade tokens to offer, so they had to rely on their pitching staff to keep them in games, with some hope of competing in the AL East. It did not work. Then they made a surprise move and took Bob Melvin away from the Oakland A’s. Now they need a designated batter to replace him, and they seem to have hit gold with the signing of Bob Melvin.
San Diego Padres Sign Bob Melvin Away From Oakland A’s
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Episode 375 – Bob Melvin reportedly signs a multi-year deal to become the next manager of the San Diego Padres, leaving his hometown of Oakland A’s after…
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