Padres Press Clips Tuesday, February 02, 2016

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’16 Padres promotions: Wookies, ghosts and thrones UT San Diego Sanders 2

Towers would love a Freese deal do-over MLB.com Brock 3

Padres announce 2016 promo schedule MLB.com Brock 5

Embrace the brown with the Padres’ newest uniforms MLB.com Clair 7

Around the Horn: Second base MLB.com Brock 9

Friar talk: A reason to shop Andrew Cashner UT San Diego Sanders 11

'16 Padres promotions: Wookies, ghosts and thrones Team to host Star Wars-, Ghostbusters-, Game of Thrones-themed games By Jeff Sanders | 2:59 p.m. Feb. 1, 2016 Comic Con International closes up shop at San Diego’s convention center on July 24. The Padres, however, are giving San Diegans good reason to keep cosplay costumes within reach in 2016:

Ghostbuster-, Game of Thrones- and Star Wars-themed home games.

In other words, you have our permission to nerd-out if you can fill in the blanks without Google:

Ghostbusters Game – July 15 against the Giants

 “If someone asks if you’re a god, you say ____!” Game of Thrones game – July 29 against the Reds

 “Chaos isn’t a pit. Chaos is a ____.” Star Wars game – Sept. 8 against the Rockies

 “I suggest a new strategy, Artoo. Let the ____ win.” The Padres announced this year’s giveaways last month. Other schedule promotions include the University of San Diego night (May 6), UC San Diego night (June 3), Zombie Day (June 7), post-game movie on the field (Aug. 6), Superhero Day (Aug. 18), Pac-12 Night (Aug. 19) and Oktoberfest (Sept. 29). Click here for a game-by-game look at the 2016 promotional schedule.

Towers would love a Freese deal do-over Former Padres GM learns lesson in 2007 trade for Edmonds By Corey Brock / MLB.com | @FollowThePadres | 12:01 AM ET

SAN DIEGO -- By no means was Kevin Towers an inexperienced general manager at the time he dealt a Minor League infielder by the name of David Freese to the Cardinals for veteran center fielder Jim Edmonds. Truth be told, Towers was well into his long tenure (1995-2009) with the Padres when he shipped Freese, who had yet to play above Class A Advanced, to acquire Edmonds in December of 2007.

"I would say the one that didn't turn out well -- and the one I learned the most from -- was the Edmonds- for-Freese deal," Towers said recently.

Towers, currently a special assistant for player personnel for the Reds, spent the offseason of 2007 looking for some offensive punch and defensive impact in center field.

The Padres were coming off a season where they narrowly missed the playoffs, dropping the now- infamous Game 163 to the Rockies. Mike Cameron, who was the team's center fielder the two previous seasons, hit free agency that offseason.

Edmonds, an eight-time Glove Glover and four-time All-Star, was coming off the first down season of his career (.252/.325/.403), but Towers was hopeful for a bounce-back season with the Padres in his native Southern California.

"At the time, we were really looking for a center fielder, because we didn't have anyone in the system," Towers said. "You think Jim Edmonds, and you can't but help think of those great catches he made [in his career].

"So we were hoping he still had something left in the tank."

It turns out, Edmonds didn't. He hit .178 in 26 games and was released on May 9. He played better afterwards, with the Cubs and Brewers, but that didn't do the Padres or Towers much good.

But Edmonds' performance wasn't the part that bothered Towers the most -- it was, looking back on it now, giving up Freese. "We had [third baseman] Kevin Kouzmanoff and Chase Headley coming, and he [Freese] was going to be blocked," Towers said. "We had the two young guys in front of him who we liked. We liked David, too.

"The lesson I learned from that was you don't trade guys just because you have depth at one spot."

This became more evident in 2011, when Freese, as the third baseman for the Cardinals, helped them win a World Series. More than that, he became just the sixth player in Major League history to be named MVP of a League Championship Series and the World Series.

Freese, a one-man wrecking crew, had a big league-record 21 RBIs during that postseason.

As for the 2011 Padres, they lost 91 games. Towers was long gone by then, too.

"That's the beauty of the game, you learn from your mistakes," Towers said. "Some deals you think are your better deals turn out to be your worst. Some of your worse deals become your best deals. Players change, there's injuries. So much changes."

One thing that did change, especially after the Freese deal, was how Towers looked at deals in terms of blocked players and depth at certain positions.

"Just because you're loaded with middle infielders doesn't mean you should shy away from drafting them," he said. "And corner infielders, like Freese, are hard to come by. I just thought, at the time, that he was expendable and we really liked Edmonds."

Padres announce 2016 promo schedule Star Wars, Ghostbusters, Game of Thrones among themes By Corey Brock / MLB.com | @FollowThePadres | February 1st, 2016 SAN DIEGO -- The Padres on Monday released their promotional schedule for the upcoming season, and there's a particular theme to it.

Or, more like it, themes.

Star Wars Day, Ghostbusters Day and Game of Thrones Day are three of several theme games the Padres will offer in 2016.

The team will also have Pride Night, Superhero Day, Zombie Day, Faith and Family Night and Sunday Funday in addition to various Heritage Nights to honor different cultures. Theme game packages include a game ticket and an exclusive giveaway item. Fans will have access to a theme game presale beginning Wednesday atpadres.com/themegames.

The promotional schedule also includes the return of Way Back Wednesdays and Friday night Party in the Park, presented by Southwest Airlines.

Every Tuesday home game will once again be Taco Tuesday presented by Cholula Hot Sauce, featuring $1 street tacos sold at concession locations throughout the ballpark.

Way Back Wednesdays will continue to celebrate Padres history, with five summer day games (June 8, June 15, June 29, Aug. 3 and Aug. 24) on the calendar.

For the games, players will wear home white, blue and orange pinstripe uniforms worn by the Padres from 1991 to 2001. In-game music, graphics and other entertainment features will add to the Way Back Wednesday theme on these days.

As previously announced, Baseball Night in San Diego returns in 2016, with every Saturday home game offering a giveaway or event for all fans. Three Friday games (June 17, July 1 and Aug. 5) and two Sunday games (April 24 and May 22) also will feature a giveaway or event. The full schedule can be found at padres.com/BNISD. 5

The Padres will continue to honor those who serve throughout the season, with First Responders salutes on six Fridays, as well as Military Appreciation Day every Sunday.

The entire promotions and events calendar is available at padres.com/promotions. The 2016 promotional schedule is subject to change.

Single-game tickets for all home games will go on sale to the general public Feb. 11 at 10 a.m. at padres.com.

Fans can get their choice of games before tickets go on sale to the general public through the Premium Double Buy presale at padres.com/doublebuy.

16 days until Spring Training: Embrace the brown with the Padres' newest uniforms

By Michael Clair Spring Training is less than a month away! Let us keep you company until the first pitcher-and- catcher workouts on Feb. 18 with a team-by-team countdown of reasons to get excited for the 2016 MLB season. Today: The San Diego Padres.

One of the greatest things sports gives us is a kaleidoscope of colors, a full Lucky Charms-set of hues and styles that our teams wear out on the field. I'm not ashamed to admit that many of my sports fandoms simply come from my fascination with a logo or a design. The Padres are doing their part by bringing back the brown for 2016, embracing the unfairly maligned color and the one with a unique history to the team.

Plus, they're called the Padres. Judging from my understanding of them from the animated Robin Hood film, don't they all wander around in brown robes?

The team repped brown from its earliest days in the Majors until 1991, when they switched to blue and orange; however, the color will now be worn for every Friday home game. Though the team has worn brown throwbacks in recent years, this is the first new jersey with that color scheme that they'll be sporting. It will also get some modern updates, like the font for the team name across the chest -- but, most importantly, they're bringing back the yellow half-panel cap! Glory to the half-panel cap!

These jerseys should bring a lot of joy to the "Bring Back the Brown" movement, a sect of Padres fans who bow before the altar of wooden, earthy-tones. Looking at the Padres history, how could you resist bringing back a look that Dave Winfield rocked? This photo works for both baseball cards and posters of dreamy dudes to hang in your bedroom.

Or Goose Gossage, who matched his facial hair to the browns, yellows and oranges in the Padres uniform:

Ozzie Smith may have won Gold Gloves, but he looked best in brown:

And finally, Tony Gwynn made the Padres uniform good enough for formal occasions. Like photoshoots when you win major awards:

The brown is back. What a time to be alive.

Around the Horn: Second base Looks like job is Spangenberg's to lose By Corey Brock / MLB.com | @FollowThePadres | February 1st, 2016 SAN DIEGO -- In his brief time in the big leagues, Cory Spangenberg has worn several gloves.

He has played second base, third base and spent some time at all three outfield positions.

Could Spangenberg find himself essentially locked into one spot this season?

As it stands today, Spangenberg looks like the front-runner to win the Padres' second base job on Opening Day. In 2015, the Padres used four second basemen: Jedd Gyorko, Spangenberg, Alexi Amarista and Yangervis Solarte. With Gyorko being dealt to the Cardinals, the job appears to be Spangenberg's to lose this spring.

Spangenberg is coming off a season in which he appeared in a career-high 70 games -- including 67 starts -- at second base, of his 108 games played overall. According to FanGraphs, he had a 2.1 WAR (Wins Above Replacement) season in 2015.

Spangenberg, who turns 25 in March, hit .271/.333/.399 with four home runs, 21 RBIs and nine steals last season. ZiPsprojections have him at a 1.7 zWAR in 2016.

At times in 2014, Spangenberg offered the Padres an element of speed that was not part of the roster. He even helped win a few games with that speed. And he fits the bill of the style new manager Andy Green wants to play this season.

"We're going to be a much more athletic club, and I think that brand of baseball is very appealing to me, because when you have raw athleticism and speed, you have the capacity to put pressure on the defense in a lot of different ways," Green said during the Winter Meetings.

Still, Spangenberg won't just be handed the position. The Padres have other players on the roster who can play second base, such as Jose Pirela, who played 27 games at second base a year ago for the Yankees but rated as a negative-three in DRS (Defensive Runs Saved). Pirela plays the outfield as well and could fill a utility role.

Former big leaguer Jemile Weeks comes to camp on a Minor League deal. Carlos Asuaje, who was acquired from the Red Sox in the Craig Kimbrel deal, has a shot at a utility role.

But for now, the job appears to belong to Spangenberg, who was the 10th overall pick by the Padres in the 2011 Draft.

Friar talk: A reason to shop Andrew Cashner Orioles reportedly interested in Padres right-hander as alternative to Yovani Gallardo By Jeff Sanders | 10 a.m. Feb. 2, 2016 A little more than two weeks away from pitchers and catchers, the Padres appear poised to open spring training with trade target Andrew Cashner in their rotation.

That could still change.

As reported by Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, the Orioles are interested in the 29-year-old right-hander as a potential alternative to Yovani Gallardo, a WHIP- challenged right-hander who’d cost Baltimore its 14th overall selection. Unless the Orioles consider a bounceback candidate like Mat Latos on a one-year deal, Kubatko notes that trading for a starter is far more realistic so long as “teams stop asking for Kevin Gausman.”

Of course, the Padres might be in a good position to insist on that sort of return.

A pending free agent, Cashner will at least fetch a first-round pick for the Padres if he rejects a qualifying offer next offseason, and that luxury will extend to any team that acquires him before Opening Day.

Which gives the Padres a two-month window to stack Cashner, a modest $7.15 million salary and a first-round draft pick against the remnants of the starting pitching free agent class.

Even after a down year – spikes in ERA (4.34) and WHIP (1.44) – there are reasons a contender should prefer Cashner to the likes of Gallardo and surrendering a first- round pick, Latos coming off the worst year of his career and a long list of pillow- contract candidates still up for grabs, from Cliff Lee to Tim Lincecum.

For one, Cashner is coming off the healthiest season of his career, one in which he threw a career-high 184 innings. His strikeout rate also topped 8.0-per-nine-innings for the first time since 2012, his velocity was a tick up in 2015 and he’s only one

11 season removed from a two-year stint in which he fashioned a 2.87 ERA, a 1.13 WHIP and 221 strikeouts over 298 innings.

Faced with some of the alternatives, a rebound isn’t that hard of a sell for any contenders still looking to fill a hole in the rotation.

A.J. Preller ought to work that to his advantage while he can.

AROUND THE WATER COOLER

 On the comeback trail, former Padres left fielder Carlos Quentin is getting an invite to big league spring training after agreeing to a minor league deal with the Twins, according to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. The Padres included the 33-year-old Quentin in last year’s trade for Craig Kimbrel and Melvin Upton. Atlanta subsequently DFA’d Quentin, who walked away from an attempt to catch on with the Mariners after hitting .176/.263/.235 in five games at Triple-A Tacoma. The San Diego University High product has 154 career homers over parts of nine big league seasons, but hit just 33 in three seasons (218) games with his hometown Padres.  In honor of Groundhog Day, former Padres General Manager Kevin Towers tells MLB.com that he'd like a do-over on the deal that sent minor league third baseman David Freese to the Cardinals for Jim Edmonds. Freese went on to postseason glory for St. Louis, while Edmonds was released by May 9 the year that Towers acquired him.