The Texas Rangers moved quickly, sliding Skip Schumaker from a senior advisor role in the front office to into the dugout as the replacement for Bruce Bochy. That left seven managerial openings across the game before Mike Shildt announced his decision to retire .

Of those teams, the Padres are the only franchise coming off a postseason berth. They pared spending from $282.8 million in 2023, per Spotrac, to $185.9 million in 2024. While payroll jumped up to $228.6 million this year, there is no indication the Padres will spend like they did two years ago.

That said, baseball ops chief A.J. Preller is as inventive as any in the game. And the results — four playoff berths over the last six years —.are unprecedented in franchise history.

The team has stars in the prime of their career. Th

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