The Padres can’t fake middle-order fear this winter. There will be a posted bat that could hand it to them.
There’s a clean way to frame San Diego’s winter: last year was about triage; this one has to be about teeth. If the Padres truly plan to hang with the Dodgers over 162 and not just in the occasional head-to-head flex, they need a left-handed middle-order bat that moves scoreboards. With Luis Arraez and Ryan O’Hearn headed to free agency, first base is a question mark and designated hitter isn’t exactly welded shut, either.