The Padres checked the first box on their offseason to-do list when they hired Craig Stammen as their next manager. The second box is larger, louder and unavoidable: finding enough starting pitching for Stammen to employ.
Every club at the Las Vegas General Managers’ Meetings this week claimed pitching as priority No. 1. A.J. Preller has said the same before. But this autumn the need is sharper, the margin thinner.
With Michael King and Dylan Cease in free agency and Yu Darvish sidelined well into 2026 after elbow surgery, the Padres enter an offseason carrying at least two rotation vacancies and a farm system light on upper-level arms.
“Every year, every team in here is talking about starting pitching,” Preller said. “But especially with King and Cease in free agency and Darvish’s injury, it’s probably our top need going into the offseason.”
Preller has addressed similar shortages before through creative offseason maneuvering. King, Cease, Darvish and Joe Musgrove all arrived via bold, often unexpected routes. Musgrove should return from Tommy John surgery in 2025, softening one blow, but the Padres are again staring at an empty middle of the rotation.
Routes to Reinforcement
Trades and free agency remain the clearest avenues, though neither is simple. King and Cease are likely to decline qualifying offers, and the pitching market may thin quickly. The Padres could explore upside plays or back-end stability, counting on their own pitching infrastructure to finish the job.
That belief is anchored in the work of pitching coach Ruben Niebla, whose presence is both reassuring and organizationally significant. Under Niebla, incoming arms have tended to sharpen, not regress.
“A lot of the pitchers we’ve brought in from outside the organization have come in … and in a lot of cases, they’ve gotten better,” Preller said. “That speaks to Ruben and the pitching program that’s in place.”
Niebla remaining on Stammen’s staff is, in some ways, the quiet headline of the week. It maintains continuity at a moment when roster uncertainty is unavoidable.
The Mason Miller Question
One of the most delicate decisions ahead involves Mason Miller, whose electric arm has made him one of baseball’s most overpowering relievers. Whether that arm should stretch into starting-pitcher territory is a conversation the club has delayed but can no longer avoid.
“A big part of it is going to be sitting down with Mason, getting his thoughts in the next week or so, and making an informed decision,” Preller said.
Moving Miller to the rotation would address innings but could diminish a bullpen that functioned as a strength throughout 2025. “You’re always balancing the need to get more innings,” Preller said, “and we want to make sure we don’t look up and have two mediocre units.”
Internal Options, and the Thin Line Behind Them
As of today, Nick Pivetta stands atop the rotation, with a returning Musgrove not far behind. Randy Vásquez projects into the back end. Beyond that, the picture is hazy.
JP Sears and Matt Waldron both endured difficult 2025 seasons; rebounds from either would ease the offseason pressure considerably. Preller also cited Miguel Mendez, the organization’s No. 5 prospect, whose rapid rise through the system has made him an intriguing depth candidate.
But no matter how the internal pieces line up, the Padres will need more. And they know it.
Craig Stammen’s Unlikely Path Brings the Padres a New Voice — And Familiar Values
Back home in San Diego, the Padres introduced Craig Stammen as the 20th manager in franchise history. In one sense, the hire is a break with tradition: Stammen is the first Padres skipper whose playing career was spent primarily in the bullpen. In another sense, it is a return to a comfortable organizational pattern.
He follows a line of internal voices elevated into leadership roles — from Bruce Bochy to Jerry Coleman to the late Kevin Towers, who moved from scouting director to GM after impressing during an interview process he wasn’t expecting to win.
Stammen’s path carried a similar curve. A long-time reliever for the Padres, he retired in 2023 after a final attempt to return from injury. Preller hired him immediately as a special assistant, and Stammen threw himself into every corner of the operation: player development meetings, draft preparation, trade-deadline discussions, and the rhythms of a Major League coaching staff.
When the Padres began their search to replace Mike Shildt, Stammen was initially part of the interview panels — until Preller reversed the questions.
“Would you want to be the manager?” Preller asked.
Stammen’s answer came only after a conversation with his wife, Audrey, and consideration of the family logistics of a manager’s life. When he stepped to the podium Monday at Petco Park, he did so with conviction.
“It’s about this organization and about making the fan base, the Friar faithful, proud of the product that we put on the field,” Stammen said. “I’m excited to start that process, be a leader in that process … and take this organization to a place that we haven’t been yet.”
A Manager Built on People
Padres Caravan rolls through Escondido in undated photo/The Grapevine.
Preller cited Stammen’s steadiness — the same player in big wins or tough losses — and his authenticity as qualities that translated naturally into leadership.
“He’s super genuine,” Preller said. “What you see is what you’re going to get.”
Stammen, now 41, made 333 appearances over six seasons in a Padres uniform. His managerial vision centers on collaboration, not command. He stressed the strengths of the existing staff, particularly Niebla’s return, and the importance of collective decision-making.
“This isn’t a one-man Craig Stammen show,” he said. “Rely on a lot of people to have my back and create processes that lead us to the championship.”
History, Revisited — And Yet to Be Made
The Padres have twice before turned inward for leadership and twice found long-term stability. Towers lasted 15 seasons and built a pennant winner. Bochy steered the team to four postseason trips and a World Series appearance before launching a Hall of Fame career.
Whether Stammen’s tenure follows those arcs remains unwritten. But his hiring — modest in tone, grounded in familiarity, and built on organizational trust — signals that the Padres enter this offseason not only searching for pitching, but forging a new voice to guide it.
And in a winter where the rotation is unsettled and questions outnumber answers, a manager rooted in steadiness may prove as valuable as any arm they acquire.
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