Listen, we know it's tough to catch up on everything happening in the baseball world each morning. There are all kinds of stories, rumors, game coverage, and Vines of dudes getting hit in the beans every day. Trying to find all of it while on your way to work or sitting at your desk just isn't easy. It's okay, though, we're going to do the heavy lifting for you each morning, and find the things you need to see from within the SB Nation baseball network as well as from elsewhere. Please hold your applause until the end, or at least until after you subscribe to the newsletter.
Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports
★★★
This past winter, the Padres traded four prospects to the Braves for a year of Justin Upton. They weren’t the Padres four best prospects or anything, but there was still plenty of promise in the group. General manager A.J. Preller didn’t just give up those kids in order to get a year of Upton’s bat in his new-look Padres lineup, though. He also made the deal for Upton because he felt, given some time to get used to this organization, the outfielder would want to stick around long-term and sign what would easily be the largest contract ever handed out by the Padres.
Now, both Preller and Upton know it’s too early to begin negotiations. The regular season hasn’t even started yet, and the Padres haven’t proven that their makeover has worked for anything other than getting attention. If Upton doesn’t grow to hate Petco Park, though, and he ends up falling in love with the organization and the city and his teammates, then maybe he does end up sticking in San Diego. It will cost the Padres well over $100 million, but they aren’t the Padres of the last few years, either: they not only will have the desire to sign Upton long-term, but will have the financial capability to as well. Thank new owners, a new television deal, and baseball’s national revenue streams for that.
Upton will still only be 28 years old when he hits free agency, and ranks 23rd in the majors in OPS+ since 2011, comfortably wedged between franchise players like Evan Longoria, Carlos Santana, Joe Mauer, and Yadier Molina. It’s right around what Adrian Gonzalez has managed in the same stretch, too: given the Padres traded Gonzalez before the 2011 season when he was in the situation Upton is now, you can see how much has changed in San Diego in just four years time.
- Cuban free agent Hector Olivera signed with the Dodgers for six years and $62.5 million. Word is that Olivera does in fact have a UCL tear, but the Dodgers have written some protection into the contract, with a one-year, $1 million team option for 2021 that can be invoked if Olivera’s elbow becomes a problem beforehand. This is similar to what the Red Sox did with John Lackey, who this season is pitching on a league-minimum option thanks to his 2011 Tommy John surgery.
- Prince Fielder dropped a perfect bunt single to beat the shift. Instead of outlawing the shift and extreme defensive positioning, maybe players should just do this more often? Listen, if Prince, David Ortiz, and the somehow even slower Adrian Gonzalez can pull it off, all of y’all can.
- Do you think Bryce Harper has been to the gym this winter? Sometimes it’s easy to forget that he’s just 22 and isn’t done hulking up just yet.
- Let’s build a team out of the worst contracts in baseball!
- Technology has allowed minor-league teams to make customized, pop-culture-centric jerseys, and while it can get annoying at times, a lot of it is done for charity.
- How much time should Brandon Belt spend in the Giants’ outfield?
- The Red Sox rotation could be pretty good! As this spring has shown us, it could also be pretty bad. What’s the right time to panic about the latter scenario?
- Russell Carlton would like to tell you about why baseball players touch each other so much.
- Two underrated Yankees could have a significant impact on the 2015 season.
- How much worse did the Royals rotation get when they lost James Shields to free agency? (Hint: Edinson Volquez.)
- Consider the discussion of MLB service time manipulation as it pertains to Noah Syndergaard a light snack before the inevitable Kris Bryant buffet on the same subject.
See More:
