The Dodgers and Padres need this. Both teams stayed in the spotlight by making big personnel changes ranging from the players all the way up to the very top with owners. After a while, the news and sports talk shows seem to forget that actually playing the game of baseball is all that really matters. So I’m sure that nobody is more ready than the players to get put the offseason in the rearview.

The Dodgers boast some young rising stars in Matt Kemp, Clayton Kershaw, and Dee Gordon that everyone is raving about. But what is most interesting about the Padres this year is that all of their players are rising stars you just haven’t heard of yet. Top prospects in trades have come over by the boat load over the last few years as the team began rebuilding their roster. The last two aces pitching for the Padres have found themselves packing their bags in exchange for players. Jake Peavy, the 2007 Cy Young award winner was traded for four prospects to the White Sox and last year’s ace, Mat Latos, was recently shipped off for four more. Continue reading →