Opening Day: How the Padres changed since October
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Nick Pivetta was the Padres' top offseason addition. Photo: Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images
The Padres are back with largely the same group that in 2024 delivered one of the best seasons in franchise history, and a crushing October collapse to end it.
Why it matters: It was a relatively quiet offseason for the Padres — at least compared to a year ago, when they traded away future Hall of Famer Juan Soto.
- That is, aside from the lawsuit filed by Sheel Seidler, widow of late Padres owner Peter Seidler, against his brothers for control of the team.
What we're watching: Absent major additions, the Padres' hopes for building on last year's 93-win total come from within.
- Center fielder Jackson Merrill made the All-Star team and was runner up for rookie of the year
- The 21-year-old will now look to establish himself as one of the league's best players.
- Right fielder Fernando Tatis, Jr., likewise, missed nearly two months last year and played injured when he was in the lineup.
- The 2025 Padres blueprint for a great season includes a healthy Tatis again contending for the NL MVP.
The bottom line: Opening Day starter Michael King and last year's marquee addition, Dylan Cease, need to carry a rotation that's already dealing with injuries.
- Joe Musgrove will miss the entire season with an elbow injury, and Yu Darvish will begin the season on the injured list with elbow inflammation.
Catch up quick: Nick Pivetta, a right-handed pitcher from the Red Sox, headlines the new additions and will slot into the rotation spot opened by Musgrove's injury.
- Pivetta will be joined in the rotation to start the year by left hander Kyle Hart, a 31-year-old who spent last year in Korea and hasn't pitched in the majors since 2020.
- Jason Heyward is poised to begin his 16th major league season as the starter in left field after signing a cheap one-year deal.
The other side: The team said goodbye to left fielder Jurickson Profar after a career year in 2024, and fan favorite Ha-Seong Kim, who moved on to the Braves and Rays, respectively.
- All-Star lefty reliever Tanner Scott left for a massive deal with the Dodgers, too, and Kyle Higashioka's departure has created a question mark at catcher.