James Shields was one of several significant offseason additions for the Padres

The NL West has been a division primarily predicated on pitching and defense. Three of the division’s founding members – Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, and San Francisco Giants – play in spacious ballparks that are considered “pitcher-friendly” and correspondingly have constructed their teams to match. According to ESPN Park Factors for 2014, AT&T Park (San Francisco) ranked #25 in runs scored, Dodger Stadium ranked #27, and Petco Park (San Diego) ranked #29.

In 1993, the Colorado Rockies joined the division as an expansion team. Due to the high altitude, Coors Field became one of the most prolific ballparks for hitters and destroyer of pitching staffs. Coors Field ranked #1 in ESPN Park Factors for 2014. The construction of the Rockies has always been geared toward the offensive side of the ball.

The Arizona Diamondbacks joined the division in 1998 as an expansion team. Chase Field ranked as the #2 park for runs scored in 2014. The Diamondbacks did win the World Series in 2001 based on the pitching/defense model, but it required two Hall-of-Fame pitchers to accomplish that feat.

Below I break down the Padres, and try to drop as much knowledge to help you derive fantasy euphoria!

New General Manager, A.J. Preller, went ballistic this offseason. Through a bevy of trades, he dramatically improved the offense while making a potent pitching staff even better.

OUTFIELD

• Matt Kemp was the headline acquisition for Preller. He was traded for C Yasmani Grandal. Kemp is currently the #16 outfielder. The right-handed power bat bounced back the second half of last year after two injury-riddled campaigns. He was diagnosed with arthritis in the hips during the offseason, so don’t expect too many stolen bases. In 2011, Kemp stole 40 bases during his MVP-esque season. In subsequent seasons he’s totaled nine, nine, and eight. He still possesses power and can take a walk as evidenced by his career .349 OBP, but he does strikeout often. If healthy, a fair expectation is .285 AVP, .340 OBP, 20+ HRs, 85+ RBI, and 5 SBs.
• Preller double-downed on outfielders and traded for Justin Upton, another right-handed power bat that strikes out a lot. He profiles very similarly to Kemp in that they both play bad defense and strike out. All kidding aside, the HR, RBI, and SB numbers should be very close. The differences are that Upton is a few years younger, doesn’t have the injury history of Kemp, will hit for a lower AVG and a slightly higher OBP. Upton is ranked in the same range as Kemp.
• Two was fun but three was the key for Preller. He triple-dipped into the outfield pool when he traded for Wil Myers. Myers was the hot prospect of the Kansas City Royals, who traded him to the Tampa Bay Rays in the deal involving James Shields. At the time, the baseball community thought the Rays “stole” one from the Royals, but it was KC which got the last laugh as Shields helped them reach the World Series. Myers has been underwhelming to say the least. In his brief MLB career, he has a .258 AVG, .324 OBP, 19 HRs, 88 RBI, 11 SBs, and 181 Ks in 175 games played. He has power, but pitchers have really learned how to abuse him; pound him inside with heat then make him chase soft stuff away. He is currently ranked as the #52 outfielder, around the likes of Joc Pederson. He is slated as the starting center fielder for the Padres but he is not a good defender. Can he stay in the lineup? If he doesn’t hit, I wouldn’t be shocked if he gets replaced.

FIRST BASE

• Yonder Alonso is slated as the starting first baseman. He is not fantasy relevant. If you must know, expect a .270 AVG, .330 OBP, 10 HRs, 60 RBI, and 5 SBs.

SECOND BASE

• Jedd Gyorko is the #23 second baseman. He has pop as evidenced by his 23 HRs in 2013. He also hit for a .210 AVG last year, and has a career sub-.300 OBP. With only 4 career stolen bases, he won’t contribute much in that department. He is often hyped as a breakout candidate. I have my doubts. He has the potential to be a cheap power source at the second base position if that’s what you need for your team.

SHORTSTOP

• Alexi Amarista is not fantasy relevant. .235 AVG, .280 OBP, 5 HRs, 35 RBI, and 10 SBs. If you roster Amarista, you are either in the deepest of leagues or in big trouble.

THIRD BASE

• Yangervis Solarte is slated to start at third base. The switch-hitter is ranked as the #45 third baseman. Probably only viable in the deepest of leagues, Solarte offers no speed, a .260 AVG, .336 OBP, and 10 HRs. The RBI and runs scored will be dependent on where he hits in the lineup.

CATCHER

• Derek Norris is ranked as the #18 catcher. He’s coming over from Oakland where he never received more than 385 at-bats. Expect a .250 AVG, .335 OBP, 10 HRs, and a couple of steals.

STARTING PITCHERS

• James Shields was the prize acquisition of the offseason. While not a bonafide ace, he definitely makes this pitching staff better and deeper. The guy is a horse and will give you 200+ innings pitched every year. He has the potential to approach 200 strikeouts with his devastating change-up. In 2011 and 2012 he struck out 225 and 223 batters respectively. He has a career 3.72 ERA and 1.220 WHIP. Those numbers should come down as he’s moving from the AL to the NL. Petco Park should also play well for him. The one negative is that the defense will be much worse than what he had in KC, which was elite. Shields is currently the #18 starting pitcher around Jacob deGrom and Sonny Gray.
• Tyson Ross had a break-out year in 2014 – 2.81 ERA, 1.211 WHIP, and 195 Ks in 195 IP. His fastball is mid-90s and the devastating slider is his out pitch. The former Oakland Athletics prospect is the #26 starting pitcher, right behind teammate James Shields.
• Andrew Cashner is the #41 starting pitcher. He possesses great stuff but pitches to contact. He just doesn’t strikeout enough batters, so his fantasy value is suppressed. He’s had some injury concerns in the past so there is risk. He is going around the likes of Yordano Ventura and Justin Verlander.
• Right below Cashner at #42 is Ian Kennedy. Kennedy had a Cy Young-caliber season in 2011 where he won 21 games for Arizona. He had a 2.88 ERA, 1.086 WHIP, and 198 Ks in 222 IP that year. It looks like that season was an aberration, as he has career marks of a 3.93 ERA and 1.273 WHIP. Kennedy has the ability to strikeout a batter per inning, but is susceptible to the long ball and giving up walks.
• Brandon Morrow is in competition with Odrisamer Despaigne for the fifth slot. They are rated as the #138 and #152 starting pitchers. Morrow has an extensive injury history and has failed to pitch more than 55 innings the past two years. When healthy, he has elite strikeout potential with a mid-90s fastball, cutter, curveball, changeup, and slider. Morrow struck out 203 batters in 179 innings during the 2011 campaign for Toronto. Morrow is a low-risk, high-upside pitcher as he will be very cheap to acquire and possesses the ability to strikeout a batter per inning.
• Odrisamer Despaigne is a Cuban pitcher who logged 96 innings last year. He compiled a 3.36 ERA and 1.22 WHIP with 65 Ks but walked 32. The scouting report on Despaigne is that he has average stuff across the board. He relies on changing arm angles and keeping batters off-balance with a plethora of pitches. His idol was Orlando Hernandez, and patterns his game after him.

RELIEF PITCHERS

• The 37-year-old Joaquin Benoit is slated to close for the Padres. His high in saves was 24 in 2013 for the Tigers. Last year he closed out 11 games. He’s like a bottle a fine wine, as he has aged well. He posted a 1.49 ERA, 0.773 WHIP, and 64 Ks/14 BBs in 54 innings pitched last year.

NL West Breakdown: Los Angeles Dodgers

NL West Breakdown: Colorado Rockies

Stan Son is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Stan, check out his archive and follow him @Stan_Son.