In less than a month, one of baseball’s most diverse rosters will begin reporting to Peoria, Ariz., for what could be described as the first normal spring training since 2019. Yet, for the Padres, this preseason still promises plenty out of the ordinary.
The World Baseball Classic returns in March after a six-year hiatus, and the Padres, as they prepare for a highly anticipated season, could miss several of their most important players for as many as two weeks. Final WBC rosters will not be set until Feb. 7, but for now, San Diego expects that its best hitter, its top starting pitcher and three starting infielders will compete in the prestigious tournament. There likely will be a few others, too.
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The list, subject to change: the Dominican Republic’s Manny Machado, Juan Soto, Nelson Cruz and Luis García, Xander Bogaerts (Netherlands), Yu Darvish (Japan), Ha-Seong Kim (Korea) and Nabil Crismatt (Colombia). Other potential participants include Nick Martinez (USA) and Seth Lugo (Puerto Rico).
WBC pitchers and catchers must report to Peoria by Feb. 13. Their non-WBC counterparts are due on Feb. 15. WBC position players will report by Feb. 16, with non-WBC position players due Feb. 20. San Diego will hold its first full-squad workout Feb. 21. Their Cactus League schedule begins Feb. 24 with a game that will double as an early test of the Padres’ (and Mariners’) adjustment to a variety of new major-league rules.
Some players will have less time to acclimate to a pitch clock, bigger bases, a limit on pickoff throws and the elimination of extreme infield shifts. The WBC will likely be played under previous international competition rules, and participants will begin working out with their respective countries’ teams in early March. The actual tournament will run from March 8 to March 21. The Dominican Republic, partly due to Machado’s and Soto’s commitments, is currently the favorite to win the whole thing.
All of the above should make for an interesting challenge as the Padres navigate the run-up to what they hope is their own championship season.
“I’m actually fine with anybody wanting to (play in the WBC) because I’d want to do it,” manager Bob Melvin said. “I know some organizations, maybe even ours, are trying to get guys not to. But I’m just the opposite. I’m all for these guys being able to compete in something like this because, for a lot of them, it might be the first and only time to be able to represent your country. It’s unlike anything else.
“As far as the position players go, I don’t have much concern because these guys are going to play, for the most part. … We get these guys before they go, and then you’re looking at, at the most, a two-week period out of roughly a six-week spring training. So I think the biggest concerns are probably the relievers. The starters should be getting their innings. I don’t worry too much about Yu Darvish. It’s the relievers you have a little bit more concern about because obviously they’re getting consistent innings in spring and maybe not as much during that.”
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Darvish, who last pitched in the WBC in 2009, could lose more time in Padres camp than most — he and his countrymen will hold their pre-tournament workouts in Japan — but the 36-year-old is known for his meticulous preparation, which could aid his adjustment to the major-league pitch clock.
“I talked to Yu about it a long time ago, and he said this is just another challenge for (him) that he looks forward to,” Melvin said. “I know he’s been a guy that’s probably not the quickest of paces at times. As far as PitchCom, I think that’s something this year that the pitchers are going to be able to give the sign to the catcher, too. So that could speed things as well for somebody like him.”
Yu Darvish will pitch for Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic. (Gary A. Vasquez / USA TODAY Sports)Melvin said he has spoken with other players about the new rules. Darvish and his fellow Padres pitchers have been timing themselves during offseason bullpen sessions. There have been discussions about pickoff moves and being quicker to the plate.
“We know the rules, but until you actually get into the games and see how it works, I think there’s going to be adjustments made along the way regardless,” Melvin said. “I don’t think anything right now that you think about is the way it’s going to play out. There’s going to be some nuance to all this stuff that you actually have to get on the field and see how it goes, and that’s what spring training’s for.
“I think guys take it seriously. By the time we get there, it’s the hitters that might have more of an adjustment period.”
As part of the pitch-clock rule, batters must be in the box and alert to the pitcher by the eight-second mark. The Padres also face some notable questions in terms of defense, and not just because infield shifts will be toned down. Kim, for example, will play shortstop for Korea, but a focus in spring training will be on getting him time at second base, a position he did not play in 2022. While the Padres have not settled on a position for Fernando Tatis Jr., it’s likely to be somewhere in the outfield — which might mean Soto will move from right field to left field. (Tatis, who is not eligible for the WBC during his suspension, resumed baseball activities early this month after undergoing a pair of surgeries last fall. He is said to be progressing well, though he has not yet gone through a hitting program.)
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Meanwhile, San Diego’s roster appears mostly set ahead of the next two months (and all the potential changes and injuries they could bring). The signing of Cruz is expected to become official by early next week, but the designated hitter might get fewer preseason at-bats than would be ideal. Cruz, 42, is playing for the Dominican Republic’s WBC team but also serving as its general manager.
The Padres are not alone in having to navigate such challenges. A couple of other clubs have as many — if not more — players participating in the WBC. For San Diego and other organizations, spring training will again be something other than normal.
“It’s going to be disjointed a bit,” another Padres official said. “There have been guys who backed out, which is probably a good thing for us. We’re supportive of (them playing in the WBC), but it’ll be a challenge.”
(Top photo of Manny Machado at the 2017 World Baseball Classic at Petco Park: Alex Trautwig / WBCI/MLB via Getty Images)
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