BASEBALL PREVIEW '03: Woof: Padres face dog days with Petco move looming

By BERNIE WILSON
AP Sports Writer

SAN DIEGO (AP) The dog days of summer could set in real fast for the San Diego Padres.

Instead of building up for their move next spring to Petco Park, the Padres are more likely to mark their final season at Qualcomm Stadium by losing at least 100 games.

The Padres lost 96 last season, finishing 32 games behind Arizona, and the bad news kept piling on once spring training rolled around.

Phil Nevin, who had 108 home runs and 375 RBIs the last four seasons, is expected to miss the entire season after dislocating his left shoulder while diving for a ball in left field during an exhibition game. He was moved to left in the offseason to make room, for the second time in two seasons, for Sean Burroughs to play third base.

Standout closer Trevor Hoffman is out until after the All-Star break following a second shoulder surgery.

Those were staggering losses for a team that had no depth to begin with and has been in a free-fall since being swept in the 1998 World Series by the New York Yankees.

Last year's 66-96 finish was the Padres' worst since they went 61-101 in their fire-sale season of 1993, when they were 43 games behind Atlanta.

So instead of looking like a team on the rise like Philadelphia, which also is moving into a new ballpark next year the Padres are more likely to mirror Tampa Bay and Milwaukee.

The economics are pretty stark. The Padres will open with a payroll of about $43 million, but nearly $20 million of that will be owed to players on the disabled list.

``Because of what's happened with Nevin and Hoffman, I mean, to be realistic, our chances of competing aren't real good right now,'' general manager Kevin Towers said. ``You take your cleanup hitter and your closer out of the equation, and we're a $22 million club right now.''

The Padres expect to recoup some of the $14 million they owe Nevin and Hoffman through insurance claims. But that hardly softens the blow, especially considering they play in the same division as the last two NL champions.

``To be realistic and say we're going to beat the Diamondbacks and Giants, it's going to be hard, missing those guys,'' Towers said.

Towers added a bat when he obtained left fielder Rondell White from the New York Yankees for outfielder Bubba Trammell and pitching prospect Mark Phillips. The move also freed up nearly $5 million in Trammell's salary for 2004, which will go toward signing a big-name free agent before the move into the new downtown ballpark.

Replacing Hoffman for more than three months will be a little more daunting. Hoffman is fifth on the career list with 352 saves. His replacement, Brandon Villafuerte, has one.

Jay Witasick had been a candidate for closer, but in another bit of terrible luck, he strained his pitching elbow while throwing out a bag of trash that included a watermelon. He and lefty reliever Kevin Walker, as well as last year's opening day starter, Kevin Jarvis, are on the DL.

There were other sore players in camp. First baseman Ryan Klesko, who needs White to protect him in the lineup, was slowed by a back strain. Burroughs felt soreness in his surgically repaired right shoulder and made five errors in spring games.

Nevin and Burroughs also were hurt last year, when a lack of depth led to one big audition of minor leaguers.

The Padres set major league records by using 59 players, 37 pitchers and having 23 pitchers win at least one game. Of the 16 players who made their big league debuts, 12 were pitchers.

Some of the pitchers who stuck are exciting 21-year-olds Oliver Perez, a lefty, and Jake Peavy. They'll join Brian Lawrence, Adam Eaton and rookie Clay Condrey in the rotation the team's lone bright spot, providing the Padres can tighten their ever-shaky defense.

``We've got great young pitching and that's going to keep us in games,'' Towers said. ``I'm still concerned somewhat about our defense.''

Rookie Xavier Nady had been set to replace Nevin in left field, but will take over in right for Trammell.

``I'm hoping we'll feel as good after the season's over about Nady and Villafuerte as we did about Perez and Peavy last year when they kind of got forced into the rotation,'' Towers said.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)