(Photo by Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images)
The success of the 2021 San Diego Padres rests almost entirely in the hands of its new-look starting rotation.
Headlined by newcomers Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove, this starting five has the potential to be the best in baseball this year. The guys at the back end are hardly slouches, either, with Chris Paddack and Adrian Morejon rounding things out while Dinelson Lamet works back from injury this spring.
What’s even crazier is the team’s big midseason splash from a year ago, Mike Clevinger, isn’t part of the picture in 2021 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.