Bench Me!

For this next entry, I'll discuss the Padres bench.

I'm going to assume the team carries 12 pitchers, so that leaves 5 spots for the bench. Here are the five guys I see holding down those spots: 


#1 John Baker, C: the more I see of him, the more I like. I think he may be the perfect compliment to Hundley.


#2 Logan Forsythe, IF: would love to see him get a crack at starting, but I think 3B is his natural position, and we're loaded there. If Cabrera can't establish himself, I'd give Forsythe the first shot at replacing him.


#3 Andy Parrino, IF: really made a nice impression last season in this role; would love to see him back again. Plus the switch hitting is a great option for the bench.


#4 Mark Kotsay, OF: wasn't really sure about the signing as far as tools go, but I guess the clubhouse factor must have been a big one. I would have been happy with Hermida or Cunningham in this role as well.


#5 ???: I don't think we've finished filling out the bench from free agency yet, so I'm leaving one spot to be determined later. If we pick up a starter for the OF, Venable could be this spot. Or, Brynes might have Rizzo and Guzman platooning (not a fan of the platoon, as previously mentioned).


I like the looks of this bench more than I did last season, especially at C and IF.


The OF (besides Maybin) is the big question at this point, as are the starters. If Blanks and Venable don't rise up, we're in huge trouble. If Guzman could figure a way to effectively use the leather, he'd be a nice option out in the grass, allowing Blanks or Rizzo to take over at 1B. Ultimately, though, I'd like to see a major move made for a corner OF. We've got the prospect pipeline and the increased payroll...let's do this!