Ninety wins.
Five playoff runs scored.
And a winter that felt uncomfortably quiet.
Now A.J. Preller is breaking that silence.
🔥 HOT NEWS: After Losing Cease and Suárez, Padres Preparing Late-Offseason Push ⚡
The San Diego Padres won 90 games last season.
It didn’t matter.
They managed just five total runs in a three-game Wild Card exit. The Dodgers went on to celebrate another World Series title. And in San Diego, a 90-win season suddenly felt like a missed opportunity.
Now, with spring training approaching, Padres GM A.J. Preller is signaling something loud and clear:
He’s not finished building this team.
“We’re going to look to add some guys here in the next couple of weeks that help us a lot,” Preller said at FanFest inside Petco Park.
Translation?
This roster isn’t done.
A Winter of Subtraction
So far, San Diego’s offseason has felt more like reshuffling than reinforcement.
What they’ve done:
- Re-signed Michael King
- Signed South Korean infielder Sung-mun Song
What they’ve lost:
- Dylan Cease (signed a $210M deal with Toronto)
- All-Star closer Robert Suárez (signed with Atlanta)
- Slugger Ryan O’Hearn (to Pittsburgh)
- Hits leader Luis Arraez (still unsigned)
- Yu Darvish (out for the season with elbow injury — possibly career-ending)
That’s not minor turnover.
That’s rotation-altering change.
In the NL West — where the Dodgers continue stacking championships — standing still isn’t neutral.
It’s falling behind.
Preller’s Checklist: Arms First, Then Bats
The Padres’ rotation currently projects around:
- Michael King
- Nick Pivetta
- Joe Musgrove
- Randy Vásquez
Competitive? Yes.
Intimidating? Not yet.
Preller made it clear: another starting pitcher is high priority.
“Continuing to add to the starting pitching side of things,” he emphasized.
But the offense might be the more urgent concern.
When Fernando Tatís Jr., Manny Machado, and Jackson Merrill aren’t carrying the load, the lineup can stall — and the Wild Card series proved it brutally.
Preller specifically mentioned upgrades at:
- First base
- Designated hitter
- Bench depth
He’s not looking for placeholders.
He’s looking for impact.
The Ownership Cloud
Complicating everything is uncertainty at the top.
The family of late owner Peter Seidler announced in November that the team is exploring a sale. Meanwhile, Preller himself is entering the final year of his contract.
Speculation quickly followed:
Is the quiet offseason about payroll control?
Preller pushed back firmly.
“We’re not in a spot where we have to do anything because of a payroll kind of situation,” he said.
Earlier trade talks may have involved trimming salary. But now, the focus is clear:
Add.
Not subtract.
As for his own future?
“I expect something to get done.”
He’s betting on himself.
Again.
The Dodgers Problem
Every decision in San Diego is measured against one benchmark:
Los Angeles.
Back-to-back World Series titles. Massive payroll. Relentless depth.
Preller has never been afraid to swing big. But 2026 feels different.
This isn’t about blockbuster splashes.
It’s about precision.
Late-winter value deals. Motivated veterans. The kind of spring additions that quietly reshape a roster — like previous late moves for Cease and Pivetta.
If Preller pulls off one strong rotation add and one reliable bat before Opening Day, the entire narrative changes.
If he doesn’t?
The gap with L.A. widens.
Tatís Is Watching
Fernando Tatís Jr. isn’t panicking — but he knows what happened.
“We can definitely play a better, higher level of baseball,” Tatís said after working on mechanical adjustments this winter.
Belief is present.
But belief alone doesn’t erase five postseason runs.
The memory of that collapse lingers in every offseason conversation.
The Final Window
February is baseball’s pressure point.
Free agents grow flexible. Trade talks accelerate. Value surfaces.
Preller is counting on that window.
“You get the opportunity to hopefully get some players that are motivated, that want to be here,” he said.
Motivated.
That word matters.
The Padres aren’t rebuilding.
They’re recalibrating.
But in a division ruled by the Dodgers, recalibration must be sharp — not cautious.
What This Really Means
San Diego doesn’t need a teardown.
It needs:
- One stabilizing starter
- One reliable run producer
- Bench insurance
- October resilience
Preller says moves are coming.
The next few weeks will determine whether this is calculated patience — or late urgency.
Either way, one thing is clear:
The Padres aren’t done.
And in the NL West, they can’t afford to be.
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