Starting rotation grade: B (will be A if Prior/Wolf healthy)
Bullpen
Despite the fact that Trevor Hoffman has only seen his ERA climb above three twice since becoming a regular closer (1995 and 2001), he's somehwat developed a bad reputation for blowing saves in big spots.
Hoffman blew saves in the 2006 All-Star Game, a potential wild-card clinching game against Milwaukee in 2007, and, of course, the one-game playoff against the Rockies last year.
The problem for Hoffman is that his best pitch–his changeup–has become less and less effective and his fastball has lost velocity over the years.
It's not Hoffman's fault, but generally, your fastbal doesn't have the same pop on it when you're 40.
That's not to say Hoffman can't get outs, as he saved 42/49 games last year.
He'll save his fair share of games this year, but Black may not be able to count on him as much as he would like in those big-time close games.
Heath Bell, Cla Merideth, and Kevin Cameron are all very good middle-inning righty options.
Justin Hampson is a viable left-handed option who would go along nicely with either Bell, Merideth, or Cameron in the 8th inning.
The final spots in the bullpen will go to either Germano, Ledezma, Hensley, Joe Thatcher, or a coupe of rookies in Carlos Guevara and Michael Gardener.
Germano and Thatcher may be the two best options, but letting Germano start at AAA so he'll be stretched out in case of an injury in the starting rotation isn't a bad idea.
The Padres have a solid bullpen with a lot of depth that should not have a problem getting outs in the late innings.
Bullpen grade: A-
Lineup
The biggest problem for San Diego over the last five or so years has always been their lineup–and that will be no different this year.
Adrian Gonzalez is one of just two legitimate offensive threats in the Padres' order. Gonzalez hit .280, 30 homeruns and 100 RBIs last year and will have to duplicate, if not improve, those numbers if the Padres want to start thinking about any offensive success.
After hitting just .228 at the All-Star break, Kevin Kouzmanoff hit .317 in the second half of 2007 to finish the year with a .275 batting average.
If Kouzmanoff can hit like he did in the second half of '07, he could be a solid No. 3 hitter ahead of Gonzalez. He won't hit you a ton of home runs, but he should drive in his fair share of runs if he ends up hitting ahead of Gonzalez.
Brian Giles and Jim Edmonds used to be very productive hitters, but at this point in their careers, a healthy season and .270/20/80 would be about the ceiling for their respective performances.
Khalil Greene somehow smacked out 27 home runs and drove in 97 runs last year, but only hit .254 with an absolutely weak .291 OBP. Greene is a better option to hit later in the order as a No. 5 or 7 hitter than he is to bat in the top 2 of the Padres' lineup.
Josh Bard should be starting over Michael Barrett, as Bard is a better hitter, better defender, and isn't a huge jackass.
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