IBC

This is a first look at the initial 2025 IBC Padres 26 man opening day roster (after recently acquiring Harrison Bader to take over as the primary CF).  A continued emphasis is being placed on the development of a better than average defensive unit, a potentially deep mid-rotation oriented SP and a more balanced offense.  While the first 6 in the batting order are a fun unit, the experience in 2024 shows how just a few injuries can wreak havoc on the best laid plans ... All statistics below are real life 2024 ...

SS - Geraldo Perdomo# .273/.344/.374, 101 OPS+ (388 PA)
LF - Christain Yelich* .315/.406/.504, 11 HR, 21 SB, 151 OPS+ (315 PA)
3B - Austin Riley .256/.322/.461, 19 HR, 115 OPS+ (469 PA)
1B - Christian Walker .251/.335/.468, 26 HR, 115 OPS+ (552 PA)
DH - Kyle Schwarber* .248/.366/.485, 38 HR, 137 OPS+ (692 PA)
.C - Dominic Keegan .285/.371/.435 (442 PA) @ AA
2B - Luis Garcia*  .282/.318/.444, 18 HR, 20 SB, 115 OPS+/ Otto Lopez .270/.313/.377, 20 SB, 87 OPS+ (434 PA) (probable partial platoon)
RF - Will Brennan* .264/.309/.388, 97 OPS+/ Rafael Lantigua.265/.367/.336, 16 SB (521 PA) @ AAA (probable partial platoon)
CF - Harrison Bader .236/.284/.373, 12 HR, 16 SB, 86 OPS+ (437 PA)

.C - Korey Lee .210/.244/.347, 12 HR, 69 OPS+ (394 PA)
UT - Nick Sogard# .273/.326/.325, 82 OPS+ (86 PA) & .283/.390/.446, 13 HR, 10 SB (440 PA) @ AAA or Brooks Baldwin# .211/.250/.316, 62 OPS+ (121 PA) & .324/.391/.460, 17 SB (354 PA) @ AAA/AA
OF - Jacob Melton .253/.310/.426, 15 HR, 30 SB (443 PA) @ AAA/AA or Denzel Clarke .269/.339/.446, 13 HR, 36 SB (431 PA)@ AA

I believe the defense is overall stronger, particularly up the middle.  Definitely should result in fewer total SB but probably a few more total HR ...

As to the pitching ... Potentially a decent starting 4 with Imanaga and Cortes due for solid ZiPS projections - and Morton and Verlander hopefully: (a) both returning, and (b) both getting a "body of work" ZiPS projection better than last year's real life results ...

SP - Shota Imanaga* 2.91 ERA, 174/28 K/BB (173.1 IP) 1.021 WHIP, 137 ERA+
... Charlie Morton 4.19, 167/68 (165.1) 1.325, 99 ERA+
... Nestor Cortes* 3.77, 162/39 (174.1) 1.153, 109 ERA+
... Justin Verlander 5.48, 74/27 (90.1) 1.384, 72 OPS+

Then someone(s) from Jonathan Cannon, Aaron Ashby*, Alex Cobb, Slade Cecconi, Allan Winans, Davis Martin or Mason Adams to be SP #5 and #6 , as well as IL replacement remembering sometimes it is better to be lucky then good ... and it's great when you are both!

Finally the pen - and what a pig pen it is.  Perhaps it will receive help as it did in 2024 when Ashby and his projected ERA+ of 106 didn't play well as a SP but he was solid as a lefty out of the pen.  Will a currently designated SP fall into the role in 2025?  Right now, best guess:

CL - Ryan Fernandez 3.51, 71/37 (66.2) 1.350, 120 ERA+

RHSU - Josh Sborz 3.86, 17/4 (16.1) 1.224, 105 ERA+
... Adam Ottavino 4.34, 70/24 (56.0) 1.286, 91 ERA+

LHSU - Brock Burke* 3.54, 25/9 (20.1) 1.131, 120 ERA+
... Wandy Peralta* 3.99, 22/13 (38.1) 1.200, 104 ERA+

LR -

MU - Erik Swanson 5.03, 37/14 (39.1) 1.271, 81 ERA+

Obviously that pen is a long way from what it will be like a year (or even 6 months) from now ...

C - Dominic 22-Keegan .244/.312/.373, 92 OPS+ (FR @ C) [BP 69/101, BA TAM #15, FG TAM #14, MLB TAM #15, BP TAM #5]
... Jesus Rodriguez *.229/.295/.324, 10 SB, 75 OPS+ (VG @ C, AV @ 1B, LF, RF, FR @ 2B, 3B) [BA SFG #16, FG NYY #12, MLB SFG #16, BP NYY #18]
... Marco 24-Dinges [BA MIL #10, MLB MIL #10]

1B - Lenyn Sosa .247/.282/.384, 14 HR, 88 OPS+ (AV @ 2B, 3B, FR @ SS)

2B - Chase Meidroth .248/.361/.340, 100 OPS+ (AV @ 2B, 3B, SS)
... Devin 24-Fitz-Gerald [BA TEX #18, FG TEX #8, MLB TEX #12]
... Sam 24-Antonacci* [BA CWS #25, MLB CWS #11]

3B - Colson Montgomery* .204/.298/.327, 11 HR 77 OPS+ (AV @ SS)
... Kyle 23-Karros .246/.307/.363, 78 OPS+ (AV @ 3B) [BA COL #11, FG COL #38, MLB COL #10, BP COL #14]
... Carson 24-DeMartini* [BA PHI #14, FG PHI #29, MLB PHI #13, BP PHI #11]

SS - Jeremy Pena .257/.307/.388, 15 HR, 15 SB, 96 OPS+ (AV @ SS)
... Jeral Perez [BA CWS #23, FG CWS #19, MLB CWS #20, BP CWS #12]
... Cristofer Torin [BA ARI #12, FG ARI #27, MLB ARI #14, BP ARI #9]
... Wilfri 24-De La Cruz# [BA BAL #20, FG CHC #30, MLB BAL #24]

LF - Victor Arias* .213/.293/.334, 78 OPS+ (AV @ LF, FR @ CF)[BA TOR #9, MLB TOR #9, BP TOR #15]
... Austin Slater .241/.332/.364, 101 OPS+ (VG @ LF, AV @ CF, RF)
... Dante 24-Nori [BA PHI #6, FG PHI #11, MLB PHI #6, BP PHI #9]

CF - Harrison Bader .237/.287/.369, 10 HR, 16 SB, 85 OPS+ (EX @ LF, CF, RF)
... Denzel Clarke .221/.287/.378, 12 HR, 17 SB, 85 OPS+ (AV @ CF, VG @ RF) [FG ATH #4, BP ATH #4]
... Jacob Melton .216/.266/.355, 13 HR, 19 SB, 74 OPS+ (VG @ RF, AV @ LF, CF) [BA HOU #2, FG HOU # , MLB HOU #2, BP HOU #4)
... Hayden 23-Alvarez* [BA LAA #21, FG LAA #25, MLB LAA #24]

RF - Alex Call .226/.327/.367, 11 HR, 11 SB, 97 OPS+ (AV @ LF, RF, FR @ CF)
... Grant McCray* .227/.290/.370, 12 HR, 18 SB, 86 OPS+ (VG @ RF, AV @ LF, CF)
... Gavin Cross* .223/.289/.367, 11 HR, 15 SB, 83 OPS+ (AV @ RF, FR @ CF) [BA KCR #14, MLB KCR #23, BP KCR #7][/color]
... Eli 24-Serrano III* [BA NYM #16, FG NY #16, MLB NYM #22, BP NYM #17]

DH - Miguel Vargas .236/.326/.397, 15 HR, 103 OPS+ (AV @ LF, 1B, 3B)

SP - Kumar Rocker 3.82, 64/17 K/BB (61.3 IP) 107 ERA+ FG TEX #2 , BP TEX #2]
... Luis Ortiz 3.99, 108/35 (126.3) 105 ERA+
... Cristian Mena 4.09, 97/44 (110.0) 101 ERA+ [BA ARI #10, FG ARI #8, MLB ARI #12, BP ARI PoI]
... Lus Gil 4.14, 150/66 (132.2) 100 ERA+
... Slade Cecconi 4.37, 100/28 (110.7) 96 ERA+
... AJ Blubaugh 4.31, 96/42 (115.3) 96 ERA+ [BA HOU #8, FG HOU #8, MLB HOU #16, BP ARI PoI]
... Mike Vasil 4.39, 92/40 (121.0) 93 ERA+
... Tyler Stuart 4.36, 88/34 (109.3) 93 ERA+ [BA WAS #18, FG WAS #20 , MLB WAS #294, BP WAS #12]
... Troy Melton 4.53, 75/29 (95.3) 92 ERA+ [BA DET #6, FG DET #6, MLB DET #6, BP DET #14]
... Davis Martin 4.46, 71/30 (78.7) 91 ERA+
... Yoendrys Gomez 4.59, 76/35 (80.3) 90 ERA+
... Ben Kudrna 5.21, 70/45 (102.0) 82 ERA+ [BA KCR #10, FG KCR #6, MLB KCR #7, BP KCR #13]
... Miguel Mendez [BA SDP #4, FG SDP #10, MLB SDP #5]
... Fernando Perez [BA TOR #17, FG TOR #22, MLB TOR #18, BP TOR #17]
... Nestor 23-German* [BA BAL #17, FG BAL #17, MLB BAL #14, BP BAL #17]
... Zach 23-Thornton[color]* [BA NYM #23, MLB NYM #23]
... Aiden 24-May* [BP MIA #11]
... Will 24-Watson* [BA NYM #24, FG NYM #19, MLB NYM #11, BP NYM #19]

CL - Julian Merryweather 3.79, 43/16 (38.0) 102 ERA+
... Grant 23-Taylor [BP #94/101, BA CWS #7, FG CWS #6, MLB CWS #6, FG CWS #6]

RHSU - Cory Laweryson 4.41, 41/19 (49.0) 94 ERA+
... Ryan Zeferjahn 4.72, 56/28 (55.3) 88 ERA+
... Shane Smith 4.69, 73/29 (78.7) 86 ERA+
... Wikelman Gonzalez 5.28, 81/50 (88.7) 77 ERA+
... Peyton Pallette 5.66, 55/33 (70.0) 72 ERA+ [BA CWS #16, FG CWS #31, MLB CWS #14, BP CWS #21]
... Matt 24-McShane* [BOS]

LHSU - Tanner Banks* 3.80, 65/20 (66.3), 111 ERA+
... Wandy Peralta* 4.03, 36/19 (44.7) 100 ERA+
... Will 23-Johnston* 4.55, 83/37 (89.0), 90 ERA+ [BA ATH #25, , FG ATH #17, MLB ATH #19]

2025 ZiPS projection
Likely draftee roster

With all the ZiPS team releases done (I'll find out about Verlander's projection when the final spread sheet gets published) I have a pretty good idea what my opening day roster looks like. I like the defense better this year then last and think this team will be competitive in the NL West.

SS - Geraldo Perdomo# .248/.340/.355, 13 SB, 95 OPS+ (1 @ SS)
DH - Kyle Schwarber* .224/.346/.470, 37 HR, 127 OPS+ (0 @ DH)
3B - Manny Machado .266/.323/.462, 26 HR, 119 OPS+ (3 @ 3B)
LF - Tyler O'Neill .250/.333/.481, 24 HR, 131 OPS+ (3 @ LF)
1B - Christian Walker .232/.317/.445, 26 HR, 113 OPS+ (8 @ 1B)
RF - Will Brennan* .278/.324/.401, 105 OPS+ (2 @ RF)
.C - Dominic Keegan .244/.312/.373, 92 OPS+ (3 @ C) [BP 69/101, MLB TAM #13, BP TAM #5]
2B - Luis Garcia* .269/.308/.423, 16 HR, 14 SB, 105 OPS+ (0 @ 2B)
CF - Harrison Bader .237/.287/.369, 10 HR, 16 SB, 85 OPS+ (8 @ CF)

C/1B/LF/RF - Hunter Goodman .239/.291/.459, 21 HR, 96 OPS+ (-9 @ C)
2B/SS/3B/LF/CF - Otto Lopez .275/.324/.381, 15 SB, 93 OPS+ (4 @ 2B)
2B/SS/3B - Brooks Baldwin# .248/.300/.370, 10 HR, 14 SB, 88 OPS+ (-2 @ SS)
LF/CF/RF - Austin Slater .241/.332/.364, 101 OPS+ (3 @ RF)
CF/RF/LF - Denzel Clarke .221/.287/.378, 12 HR, 17 SB, 85 OPS+ (5 @ CF) [BA OAK #8, FG OAK #4, MLB OAK #10, BP OAK #4]

Should be able to assemble and maintain a decent starting pitcher rotation out of the following, albeit some are aged, pitchers:

SP - Nestor Cortes* 3.54, 152/38 (152.7) 117 ERA+
... Clarke Schmidt 3.91, 108/35 (106.0) 106 ERA+
... Jordan Montgomery* 3.93, 107/43 (132.7) 105 ERA+
... Alex Cobb 3.99, 86/35 (106.0) 104 ERA+ 15 day DL
... Cristian Mena 4.09, 97/44 (110.0) 101 ERA+
... Slade Cecconi 4.37, 100/28 (115.3) 96 ERA+ 15 day DL
... Justin Verlander 4.15, 88/35 (117.0) 95 ERA+
... Charlie Morton 4.29, 153/62 (149.0) 95 ERA+

The bullpen looks MUCH better than it did in November 2024 ...

CL - Josh Hader 3.03, 90/23 (62.3) 136 ERA+

RHSU - Jose Butto 3.50, 77/30 (69.1) 116 ERA+
... Ryan Fernandez 3.71, 60/23 (60.7) 111 ERA+

LHSU - Brock Burke* 3.71, 63/21 (63.0) 112 ERA+
... Tanner Banks* 3.80 ERA, 65/20 K/BB (66.3), 111 ERA+

LR - Josh Sborz 3.71, 48/17 (43.7) 110 ERA+ 60 day DL
... Justin Topa 3.80, 36/14 (42.7) 109 ERA+

MU - Eric Swanson 3.90, 55/19 (55.3) 107 ERA+ 15 day DL

Next up, the IBC pre-season draft which will require some releases ... figure Gurriel, Ottavino, Winans, Porter and McGough are probably on the bubble ...

2025 ZiPS projection

As we approach the start of 2025 IBC season, here is a look at the IBC Padres current situation. During the off season I attempted to bolster an aging rotation by acquiring Jordan Montgomery and "Nasty" Cortes only to see them both succumb to devastating injuries which lead to the outright release of Montgomery and we will get probably 2 starts from Nasty before he goes the 60 day DL. Slade Cecconi and Alex Cobb will start on the DL as well. Fortunately Clarke Schmidt's season opening stint on the DL was relatively short term. So the season opening rotation appears to be some shifting combination of:

Nestor Cortes* 3.54 ERA, 152/38 K/BB (152.7 IP) 117 ERA+ - until 4/4, then 60 day DL
Clarke Schmidt 3.91, 109/45 (106.0) 106 ERA+ - available 4/8
Luis Ortiz 3.99, 108/35 (126.3) 105 ERA+
Alex Cobb 3.99, 86/35 (106.0) 104 ERA+ - on the DL until ...
Cristian Mena 4.09, 97/44 (110.0) 101 ERA+ [BA ARI #14, FG ARI #8, MLB ARI #13, BP ARI PoI]
Allan Winans 4.22, 86/29 (106.7.0) 97 ERA+
Slade Cecconi 4.37, 100/28 (115.3) 96 ERA+ - on the DL until ...
Justin Verlander 4.15, 88/35 (117.0) 95 ERA+
Charlie Morton 4.29, 153/62 (149.0) 95 ERA+

Rather old and very right handed ... One might even say perfectly cromulent.

Moving onto the bull pen - which has been dramatically improved over the off season. This is needed due, at least in part, to the status of the aforementioned rotation. Here, too, injuries play a part but not as significant. Josh Hader is the primary Closer but if he gets hurt I would comfortable moving Jordan Romano into that slot. The pen has some depth in anticipation of some additional injuries occurring as injuries to pitchers seems to be happening with increasing frequency. Here's how we plan to open the season:

CL - Josh Hader 3.03, 90/23 (62.3) 136 ERA+

RHSU - Jordan Romano 3.71, 55/19 (51.0) ___ ERA+
Jose Butto 3.50, 77/30 (69.1) 116 ERA+

LHSU - Brock Burke* 3.71, 63/21 (63.0) 112 ERA+
Tanner Banks* 3.80, 65/20 (66.3), 111 ERA+

LR/MU - Calvin Faucher 3.91, 57/26 (53.0) 112 ERA+
Ryan Fernandez 3.71, 60/23 (60.7) 111 ERA+

On the DL unti ...: Josh Sborz 3.71, 48/17 (43.7) 110 ERA+ and Eric Swanson 3.90, 55/19 (55.3) 107 ERA+

Depth: Justin Topa 3.80, 36/14 (42.7) 109 ERA+
Tyler Matzek* 3.99, 39/15 (38.3), 102 ERA+
Wandy Peralta* 4.03, 36/19 (44.7) 100 ERA+

As to the line-up I expect the IBC Padres will score more runs in 2025 and play better defense then last season. Injuries will impact the OF as both Austin Slater and Tyler O'Neil will spend some time on the DL after the season starts but the rest of the projected line-up appears to be healthy for at least the first few weeks:

RF - Nolan Jones* .261/.353/.434, 14 HR, 109 OPS+ (AV @ 3B, FR @ LF, RF)
DH - Kyle Schwarber* .224/.346/.470, 37 HR, 127 OPS+ (PR @ 1B, LF)
3B - Manny Machado .266/.323/.462, 26 HR, 119 OPS+ (AV @ 3B, SS)
LF - Tyler O'Neill .250/.333/.481, 24 HR, 131 OPS+ (VG @ LF, RF, AV @ CF) - on DL 4/24 until ...
1B - Christian Walker .232/.317/.445, 26 HR, 113 OPS+ (EX @ 1B)
SS -Jeremy Pena .257/.307/.388, 15 HR 15 SB, 96 OPS+ (AV @ SS)
.C - Dominic Keegan .244/.312/.373, 92 OPS+ (FR @ C) [BP 69/101, MLB TAM #13, BP TAM #5]
2B - Luis Garcia* .269/.308/.423, 16 HR, 14 SB, 105 OPS+ (FR @ 2B, SS)
CF - Harrison Bader .237/.287/.369, 10 HR, 16 SB, 85 OPS+ (EX @ LF, CF, RF)

C/1B/LF/RF - Hunter Goodman .239/.291/.459, 21 HR, 96 OPS+ (FR @ C, 1B, LF, RF)
2B/SS/3B/LF/CF - Otto Lopez .275/.324/.381, 15 SB, 93 OPS+ (VG @ 2B, SS, 3B, AV @ LF, RF, FR @ CF)
2B/SS/3B/LF/RF - Brooks Baldwin# .248/.300/.370, 10 HR, 14 SB, 88 OPS+ (AV @ 2B, SS, 3B, FR @ LF, RF)
LF/CF/RF - Will Brennan* .278/.324/.401, 105 OPS+ (AV @ LF, RF, FR @ CF)
LF/CF/RF - Austin Slater .241/.332/.364, 101 OPS+ (AV @ LF, RF, FR @ CF) - on DL 4/11 until ...

CF/RF/LF - Denzel Clarke .221/.287/.378, 12 HR, 17 SB, 85 OPS+ (5 @ CF) [BA OAK #8, FG OAK #4, MLB OAK #10, BP OAK #4] will be called when Slater goes on the DL

As seen more and more in real life there is a lot of versatility on the bench and guys like Otto Lopez and Will Brennan will probably be on the field a lot as a defensive replacement.

Let the games begin ...

At the time of these trades (through games played 6/1) the IBC Padres were in 3rd place in the NLW with a record of 27 - 30, 7 GB of the Rockies (nice work so far Nate). Schwarber led the team with 18 HR, 36 R, 43 RBI, 25 BB and 74 K. As a team they were at .240/.302/.407 and leading the NL with 81 HR. Hader had 8 S but a 5.30 ERA. Morton had 73 K. The team ERA was 4.50 with a 499/222 K/BB. The team fielding % of .984 was in the upper half of the NL but also exactly league average. Many injuries hit hard - especially the SP but also in OF. The 2025 IBC Padres were just not fun to follow. Once again they left 11 on base just tonight ...

The newly retooled 2025 IBC Padres likely won't be an improvement this season but is much deeper for future development. The new "26" for the remainder of 2025 figure to be:

3B - Chase Meidroth .248/.361/.340, 100 OPS+ (AV @ 2B, 3B, SS)
LF - Austin Slater .241/.332/.364, 101 OPS+ (VG @ LF, AV @ CF, RF)
SS - Jeremy Pena .257/.307/.388, 15 HR 15 SB, 96 OPS+ (AV @ SS)
DH - Hunter Goodman .239/.291/.459, 21 HR, 96 OPS+ (FR @ C, 1B, LF, RF)
2B - Luis Garcia* .269/.308/.423, 16 HR, 14 SB, 105 OPS+ (FR @ 2B, SS)
RF - Alex Call .226/.327/.367, 11 HR, 11 SB, 97 OPS+ (AV @ LF, RF, FR @ CF)
.C - Dominic 22-Keegan .244/.312/.373, 92 OPS+ (FR @ C) [BP 69/101, BA TAM #16, FG TAM #14, MLB TAM #13, BP TAM #5]
1B - Tim Elko .244/.284/.385, 16 HR, 87 OPS+ (FR @ 1B)
CF - Harrison Bader .237/.287/.369, 10 HR, 16 SB, 85 OPS+ (EX @ LF, CF, RF)

Bench: Goodman back-up C and 1B, so any of the below may DH when Goodman doesn't ...

2B/SS/3B - Brooks Baldwin# .248/.300/.370, 10 HR, 14 SB, 88 OPS+ (-2 @ SS)
2B/SS/3B - Lenyn Sosa .247/.282/.384, 14 HR, 88 OPS+ (AV @ 2B, 3B, FR @ SS)
CF/RF/LF - Denzel Clarke .221/.287/.378, 12 HR, 17 SB, 85 OPS+ (5 @ CF) [BA OAK #8, FG OAK #4, MLB OAK #10, BP OAK #4]
CF/RF/LF - Jacob Melton* .216/.266/.355, 13 HR, 19 SB, 74 OPS+ (VG @ RF, AV @ LF, CF) [BA HOU #1, FG HOU # , MLB HOU #3, BP HOU #4)
CF/RF/LF - Grant McCray* .227/.290/.370, 12 HR, 18 SB, 86 OPS+ (VG @ RF, AV @ LF, CF)

The OF defense will be very good which is essential in San Diego ... the infield defense will be mediocre although Elko and his 6'3" frame have played VG defense at 1B so far in real life.

SP - Kumar Rocker 3.82, 64/17 K/BB (61.3 IP) 107 ERA+ [BA #58/100, FG #58/101, MLB #39/100, BP #41/100 BA TEX #1, FG TEX # , MLB TEX #2, BP TEX #2]
... Luis Ortiz 3.99, 108/35 (126.3) 105 ERA+
... Cristian Mena 4.09, 97/44 (110.0) 101 ERA+ [BA ARI #14, FG ARI #8, MLB ARI #13, BP ARI PoI]
... Slade Cecconi 4.37, 100/28 (110.7) 96 ERA+
... AJ Blubaugh 4.31, 96/42 (115.3) 96 ERA+

CL - Calvin Faucher 3.91, 57/26 (53.0) 112 ERA+

RHSU - Josh Sborz 3.71, 48/17 (43.7) 110 ERA+
... Allan Winans 4.22, 86/29 (106.7.0) 97 ERA+

LHSU - Tanner Banks* 3.80, 65/20 (66.3), 111 ERA+
... Wandy Peralta* 4.03, 36/19 (44.7) 100 ERA+

MU - Ryan Zeferjahn 4.72, 56/28 (55.3) 88 ERA+

LR - Shane Smith 4.69, 73/29 (78.7) 86 ERA+ [BA CWS #24, FG CWS #7, MLB CWS #26]

The rotation is okay, the pen is much weaker. In 2026 and in the future I expect several of these pitchers will be fighting for rotation spots:

... Tyler Stuart 4.36, 88/34 (109.3) 93 ERA+ [BA WAS #19, FG WAS # , MLB WAS #14, BP WAS #12]
... Davis Martin 4.46, 71/30 (78.7) 91 ERA+
... Cam Schlittler 4.62, 94/42 (103.3) 89 ERA+ [BA NYY #5, FG NYY #5, MLB NYY #10, BP NYY PoI]
... Jonathan Cannon 4.71, 105/47 (145.3) 86 ERA+
... Sam Aldegherri* 5.04, 86/45 (100.0) 83 ERA+ [BA LAA #3, FG LAA #5, MLB LAA #5, BP LAA #9]
... Ben Kudrna 5.21, 70/45 (102.0) 82 ERA+ [BA KCR #5, FG KCR #6, MLB KCR #4, BP KCR #13]
... Fernando Perez [BA TOR #10, MLB TOR #12, BP TOR #17]

And as I wrote earlier I expect Grant 23-Taylor [BP #94/101, BA CWS #7, FG CWS #6, MLB CWS #6, FG CWS #6] to be next year's CL

Among position players I look forward to seeing the following develop:

SS - Colt 23-Emerson* [BA #15/100, FG #31/101, MLB #18/100, BP #23/50, BA SEA #1, BP SEA #1, MLB SEA #1]
3B - Kyle 23-Karros .246/.307/.363, 78 OPS+ (AV @ 3B) [BA COL #23, FG COL #38, MLB COL #21, BP COL #14]
... Carson 24-DeMartini* [BA PHI #14, FG PHI #29, MLB PHI #15, BP PHI #11]
... Jacob Reimer* .201/.298/.266, 62 OPS+ (AV @ 3B) [BA NYM #10, FG NYM # ]

If/when any of those 3B develop (and I expect Karros will first) then I can move Meidroth to 2B where he will eventually be an All-Star.

As we reach the approximate mid-point of the 2025 IBC season, the IBC Padres sit at 38-42, 10 games back of the Rockies and in 3rd place in the NL West.  FWIW, the Padres are 9.5 back in the wildcard with many teams to jump.  Ironically the Padres have played statistically slightly better since about 50% of the active roster has been turned over.

18-21 at home so far while 20-21 on the road.  9-13 against fellow NL West teams but 16-14 in interleague play. 10-12 vs. LH SP while 28-30 vs RH SP.  3--3 when leading after 7 but only 4-9 when tied after 7 and an awful 4-30 when trailing after 7.  12-14 in one run games and 4-7 in extra inning games.

The Padres are in the middle of the pack offensively with a .239/304/.401 slash line and are 2nd in the NL with 104 HR.  Pena and Bader are the only players who have played in all 80 games.  Pena leads the Padres with81 hits, 12 HR, 47 runs, 37 RBI and 67 K.  Pena enjoyed a 19 game hit streak. Bader leads with 18 SB.  Garcia leads with 14 doubles while Keegan has tallied 3 triples.

The Padres are also mid-pack in team pitching with a 4.37 ERA.  Ortiz is about the only healthy remaining SP from the start of the season and is the only SP with double digit games started at 16 so it would follow that he leads the team with 5 wins, 81.1 IP and 78 K with 33 BB.  Banks has appeared in 34 games and he and Ortiz lead the team with 6 loses.Banks also leads the team with 4 saves as well as with 5 holds.

Ending on a positive note, the farm system is much improved ...

Surprisingly at the end of July the IBC Padres are only one game under .500 at 54 - 55 having gone 7-3 in their last games.  Second place in NL West trailing the Rockies by 7.5 games and 5 games back of the last NL Wild Card slot.  Looking forward to the return of SS Jeremy Pena from the DL soon also ...

As a team the Padres are hitting .233/.301/.389 which places them on top the last half of the National League where the average slas team totals is .237/311/.378 .  Bader is the only player on the team to play in all 109 games and he leads the teams in steals with 26 and a team leading 49 RBI despite hitting out of the 9 hole usually.  Despite missing 20 games Pena leads the Padres with 91 hits, 14 HR, 54 runs and 5 HBP.  Garcia's 19 doubles are easily the most of anyone playing for the Padres.  McCray and Keegan both have 3 triples while Keegan also leads the squad with 31 BB and 82 K.

The team's pitching totals also place the Padres at the top of the second half in the NL with 4.27 ERA and the NL average is 4.09.  Ortiz is the team leader in a number of categories despite being suspended for quite a while.  He leads in batters faced (359), IP (87), K (84), BB (35) and is tied with Cecconi for the team lead in wins (5).  Cecconi also leads the Padres in QS (8).  Banks has appeared in the most games (48) and has the most losses (8) along with most holds (10).  Faucher's 9 saves is tops.

The end of August 2025 finds the IBC Padres on a 3 game losing streak (and 3 - 7 in their last ten games) - one game below .500 at 68 - 69 in 2nd place in the NL West and well out of the wild card chase. After a few deadline deals there is new personnel on board mostly with an eye on 2026 and beyond.

Pena and Bader lead the team in BA at .266 (McCray is hitting .279 but he does not have enough AB to "qualify") as Pena leads Bader in hits by one: 114 to 113. Pena is also the HR leader with 18 and runs with 68. Bader leads in RBI with 59 and SB with 37 as well as K at 109. As a team the Padres are right in the middle of the pack in the NL ...

With a team ERA at 3.99 the IBC Padres find themselves in the mid--pack but doing slightly better then the league average ERA of 4.11. Cecconi leads the way with 7 wins while has the most losses at 11 as well as the most holds at 7. Recently traded, Faucher has the most saves with 13. Cecconi and Ortiz lead in K with 84. Gil, who recently came off the IL, had a good month going 2 - 0 in 3 starts while getting 23 K in 17 IP. Cecconi leads in IP by a large margin at 115 and banks has appeared in the most games with 66.

Time to play out the remainder of the season ...