Padres Press Clips Friday, January 13, 2017

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Report: Padres close to deal with Cahill MLB.com Adler 2

Padres ‘disappointed’ by Chargers’ relocation MLB.com Cassavell 3

Petco Park racing season opens with Supercross Padres.com Center 4

Padres ‘deeply disappointed’ by news of Chargers’ relocation UT San Diego Lin 6

More Tony Gwynn memorabilia up for auction UT San Diego Lin 8

Padres avoid arbitration with Maurer UT San Diego Lin 9

Padres nearing deal with Trevor Cahill UT San Diego Lin 10

Report: Padres close to deal with Cahill By David Adler / MLB.com | 9:47 AM ET

The Padres are nearing a deal with free-agent right-hander Trevor Cahill, according to a report from the San Diego Union-Tribune.

The Padres have not confirmed or commented on the reported agreement.

Cahill pitched in 50 games for the Cubs last season, all but one in relief, posting a 2.74 ERA and striking out 66 batters in 65 2/3 innings, although he did not pitch in Chicago's postseason run to the World Series championship. He did, however, make six relief appearances in the 2015 playoffs.

The 28-year-old, who spent his first six Major League seasons as a starter before transitioning to the bullpen two years ago, is expected to compete for a spot in San Diego's rotation, with the bullpen a fallback option, according to the report.

Cahill is a Southern California native who attended Vista High School, which is less than an hour north of San Diego. Over his eight years in the big leagues, the former All-Star has gone 63-70 with a 4.14 ERA in 174 starts, while he has a 3.24 ERA in his 88 career relief appearances.

Padres 'disappointed' by Chargers' relocation San Diego becomes lone market with MLB as only major pro sport

By AJ Cassavell / MLB.com | @AJCassavell | January 12th, 201

SAN DIEGO -- The Padres assumed the mantle as San Diego's lone major professional sports franchise on Thursday, after the Chargers announced their plans to relocate to Los Angeles.

As a result, San Diego -- which played host to the Chargers for 56 years -- is now the only market to feature a Major League Baseball team without another major sports franchise in town.

Padres ownership reacted to the news Thursday, as executive chairman Ron Fowler and managing partner Peter Seidler released a statement.

"We are deeply disappointed by the news that the Chargers are leaving San Diego," the statement read. "The Chargers are a community treasure, and we have always believed that San Diego is better off with the team here. That said, we know San Diego will continue to grow and become an even more vibrant community."

AJ Cassavell Baltimore was the last MLB-only pro sports market. That ended with the Ravens in '96. CIN, KC, SEA and STL all two-sport baseball markets. 12:05 PM - 12 Jan 2017

The Pacific Coast League edition of the Padres held the distinction as the city's only sports franchise until the Chargers came to San Diego in 1961. But since they joined the Majors in '69, the Friars have shared the major professional sports landscape with their NFL neighbors. The two teams even split Jack Murphy Stadium from '68 until 2004, when the Padres moved into Petco Park.

Petco Park racing season opens with Supercross Dungey leads Saturday's motorcycle field; Monster Trucks follow

By Bill Center / San Diego Padres | January 12th, 2017

One of the two products of Minnesota's Chaska High to post wins at Petco Park last year will be back at the facility on Saturday. No, it will not be Padres relief pitcher Brad Hand. Chaska's Ryan Dungey will lead the field of riders competing on the floor of Petco Park in the Monster Energy Supercross at 7 p.m. PT.

The Supercross is the first of three motorsports events at Petco Park over the next five weeks. The Monster Trucks of the Monster Jam Series will make two appearances at Petco Park, Jan. 21 and Feb. 18.

Hand scored three of his 2016 wins at Petco Park last summer. Dungey won two Supercrosses in 2016 at Petco Park en route to a second straight Supercross championship and the third of his career. Dungey can't duplicate last year's double because Petco Park will host only one Supercross this season -- Saturday's fourth annual Military Appreciation Race.

"I was hoping to see if Brad was going to be here," Dungey said earlier in the week. "He was the man in high school, the best athlete on campus. Everyone looked up to Brad."

Hand, 26, was a second-round pick in the 2008 Draft out of 1,200-student Chaska High in a suburb of Minneapolis-St. Paul. Dungey, 27, was already four years into his professional riding career in 2008 and won his first Supercross title in '10 when Hand was pitching in Double-A.

Dungey and Hand are listed as two of the 11 most prominent products of Chaska, Minn. (population 25,000).

What makes Dungey unique is that Minnesota is not exactly the cradle of off-road motorcycling.

Dungey was relatively unknown when he first hit the circuit. Today, he's the rider to beat in both the stadium Monster Energy Supercross Series and the outdoor National Motocross circuit.

But the field is deep.

Dungey opened defense of his title last Saturday night by finishing second to Honda's Ken Roczen in Anaheim. Third was Dungey's KTM teammate Marvin Musquin, Husqvarna's Jason Anderson and veteran Eli Tomac on a Kawasaki.

Another featured rider in San Diego will be Australia's Chad Reed, who, at 34, is the senior member of the young man's tour. Reed is also the all-time San Diego leader with six wins and placed second to Dungey in the first Petco Park race last season.

"That Reed keeps going blows me away," said Dungey. "And San Diego is his spot. He's one of the greats."

Dungey has been compared with other greats of Supercross -- riders such as Jeremy McGrath, Ricky Carmichael, El Cajon's Ricky Johnson and Roger DeCoster. Only three riders in the 4 1/2-decade history of the sport have more titles than Dungey -- McGrath with seven, Carmichael with five and Ryan Villopoto with four. Dungey is sixth on the all-time list with 31 career race wins.

Dungey's percentage of top-five and top-10 finishes is the highest in history and ranks second only to Carmichael in percentage of podium finishes.

"It's nice to be in the conversation," Dungey said of the comparisons to the greats of the sport. "But when I look at careers like McGrath's and Carmichael's, it's pretty amazing what they did over long careers. McGrath won seven championships in eight years. Carmichael won 10 straight outdoor titles in addition to his Supercross success."

Padres 'deeply disappointed' by news of Chargers' relocation Dennis Lin Contact Reporter

The Chargers on Thursday morning announced their plans to move to Los Angeles, a relocation that will leave San Diego with a baseball club as its only major sports team. In fact, the city soon will be the only Major League Baseball locale devoid of competition from another “Big Four” franchise.

Still, the Padres have joined many others in publicly expressing disappointment that the Chargers are exiting San Diego after 56 years. Executive Chairman Ron Fowler, a longtime civic and business leader, and Managing Parter Peter Seidler, who moved to San Diego after his ownership group purchased the Padres in 2012, issued a joint statement Thursday.

“We are deeply disappointed by the news that the Chargers are leaving San Diego,” the statement said. “The Chargers are a community treasure, and we have always believed that San Diego is better off with the team here. That said, we know San Diego will continue to grow and become an even more vibrant community.”

Seidler deferred further comment to the statement Thursday. Fowler did not immediately return messages from the Union-Tribune.

The Padres had held some concerns about the Chargers’ designs on a downtown “convadium,” proposed in Measure C before being shot down by San Diego voters. In an August interview with Voice of San Diego, Fowler outlined some of those concerns, including how a new neighbor would affect parking and traffic, among other things. A week earlier, Mike Dee, the Padres’ since-ousted president and CEO, was the one member of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors to abstain from voting to endorse the Chargers’ East Village plan.

The Padres debuted in 1969, eight years after the Chargers moved to San Diego, and until Petco Park opened in 2004, the two franchises shared Jack Murphy (later, Qualcomm) Stadium.

The last MLB-only city was Baltimore from 1984 to 1995. It remains to be seen to what extent the Padres, currently rebuilding and still operating in a smaller market, can capitalize on being the top game in town.

More Tony Gwynn memorabilia up for auction Dennis Lin Contact Reporter

Nearly two years after the family of Padres great Tony Gwynn began selling off memorabilia from his storied career, more of his personal artifacts are up for bidding. SCP Auctions is currently conducting Part 2 of the Tony Gwynn Memorabilia Auction, which began last week and runs through Jan. 21.

A total of 26 items, all coming directly from Gwynn’s widow, Alicia, are featured in SCP’s 2017 Winter Premier online auction. They include the baseball from Gwynn’s 3,000th hit, his Baseball Hall of Fame induction ring and the 1995 National League batting title award.

The full collection can be viewed at scpauctions.com. A portion of the proceeds will go toward the Tony and Alicia Gwynn Foundation, a non-profit based in San Diego that focuses on improving opportunities for youth.

“My husband was a man of honor and integrity who really wanted to make a difference in this world,” Alicia Gwynn said in a release. “Just like the first auction, this one serves two objectives: to share his baseball memorabilia with the fans who loved him and to give something back to the city that treated us so well.”

Padres avoid arbitration with Maurer Dennis Lin Contact Reporter

The Padres on Friday avoided salary arbitration with right-hander Brandon Maurer, agreeing to a $1.9 million deal for the 2017 season.

Maurer, who is in his first year of arbitration eligibility, was projected to earn $1.7 million by MLBTradeRumors.com’s predictive model.

The 26-year-old struggled early last season before settling down and assuming the Padres’ closer role after the June trade of Fernando Rodney. In 71 games, Maurer posted a 4.52 ERA and converted 13 of 19 saves while averaging 9.3 strikeouts per nine innings. He will enter this spring as a candidate to resume his late-game role.

Four arbitration-eligible Padres are, for now, without deals: first baseman Wil Myers, third baseman Yangervis Solarte and left-handers Christian Friedrich and Brad Hand. Teams have until 10 a.m. Friday to exchange salary numbers for arbitration hearings that would take place next month, though agreements can still be reached in the meantime.

Padres nearing deal with Trevor Cahill Dennis Lin Contact Reporter

The Padres are closing in on a one-year deal with right-hander Trevor Cahill, sources said Thursday night. The Vista High graduate, primarily a reliever the last two seasons, is expected to compete for a rotation job with his hometown team.

Cahill, 28, was effective in the Chicago Cubs’ bullpen last season, posting a 2.74 ERA in 50 appearances (one start). He recorded 66 strikeouts and 35 walks over 65 2/3 innings.

While relief offers a fallback option, Cahill’s experience as a starter is the biggest selling point for San Diego. The free agent received interest from at least a half-dozen teams, but the Padres, with their host of unproven arms, provide the clearest opportunity.

A second-round draft choice by Oakland in 2006, Cahill has made 174 starts over eight seasons with the Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves and Cubs. He is 63-70 with a 4.14 ERA as a starter, compared to 6-6 with a 3.24 ERA as a reliever (in 88 appearances).

Cahill experienced success early in his career. In 2010, the second-year major leaguer was an All-Star with the A’s. He would join CC Sabathia as the only pitchers since 1990 to record at least 10 wins and 30 starts in each of their first four seasons.

Cahill’s production dropped after a 2011 trade to the D-backs, who eventually demoted him to the bullpen and traded him to Atlanta in 2015. The Braves released him within weeks. He latched on the same year with Chicago, where he regained effectiveness in a relief role. Cahill has made just four starts over the last two seasons.

Like other recent Padres signings, Cahill has shown an ability to keep the ball on the ground; the sinkerballer’s 56 percent groundball rate ranked among the league leaders last season.

Cahill will join Luis Perdomo, Clayton Richard, Jhoulys Chacin, Christian Friedrich, Jarred Cosart, Paul Clemens, Tyrell Jenkins and Cesar Vargas as candidates for the Padres’ rotation.