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SAN DIEGO -- The Ramón Laureano injury feels like it might be a big one.
Laureano had been struggling, sure. And, yes, the Padres have other options in left field. But there’s no doubt in my mind that Laureano’s recent struggles were tied to the hip injury that he’d been playing through for most of the season.
When he was at his best, Laureano was an impact bat in the middle part of the Padres’ lineup -- particularly against left-handed pitching. He finished with an .854 OPS last season and was hitting .292 with a .921 OPS on April 15.
That’s not to say the Padres can’t withstand his absence. I actually think they have a path to doing exactly that. Here’s what it looks like:
More production from the big bats
This feels like a broken record. But the Padres can absolutely withstand the absence of their No. 6 hitter … if they were just to get a bit more production from the first five.
There are positive signs. Fernando Tatis Jr. hasn’t tapped into his power. Otherwise, he’s been a perfectly serviceable leadoff man lately, reaching base at a .415 clip over the last 19 games, entering Monday. Jackson Merrill, meanwhile, has begun to show a few more glimpses of the old Jackson Merrill. He’s not quite chasing as much, and he’s getting the barrel to mistakes a whole lot more.
And Manny Machado? I don’t see him getting to the back-of-the-baseball-card numbers that he’s so insistent he’ll get to. But what if he gets halfway there? I think that’s a lot more likely than him finishing with an OPS around .600.
If those three are hitting like they’re capable -- or close to it -- Laureano’s absence will be seriously mitigated.
Mix and match in left field
The biggest reason for optimism surrounding Laureano’s absence is the players who will combine to replace him. Gavin Sheets will presumably get significantly more starts in left field now.
That frees up Ty France to play first and Miguel Andujar to be the regular designated hitter. (Though Andujar exited Sunday’s game with a recurrence of the hamstring issue he’s been dealing with for most of the season. The team will know more about his status by first pitch Monday night.)
In any case, Sheets, France and Andujar have been arguably the team’s three best hitters this season. More at-bats for that trio is not a bad thing.
But I don’t think it’s that simple. If all three are starting every day, there’s no experienced bat on the bench. The Padres could use one of those, given how frequently they’ve been using pinch-hitters for the Nos. 8 and 9 spots in the lineup. (It just wasn’t working with Nick Castellanos.)
The Padres also have better defensive options for left field, namely Samad Taylor, Bryce Johnson and Jase Bowen. They need to strike a balance among all those options -- mixing and matching to find a different solution each day. (They could also seriously use a bit more production at the bottom of the order -- which they finally got from Taylor, Freddy Fermin and Sung-Mun Song over the past couple days.)
Add another bat at the Deadline
A couple weeks ago, when I ranked the Padres’ biggest needs ahead of trade season, I wondered whether their top priority would be a corner outfield bat or a starting pitcher. There’s no longer any wondering.
They need a bat. Someone capable of playing left field, who can sit right around the middle third of the lineup. The rest of the roster should fall into place from there.
The Sheets/France/Andujar trio is best used as three players for two spots at first base and DH. Johnson, Taylor and Bowen are better used as speed-and-defense bench pieces. (And if there’s only room for one or two of them? Let them compete for a roster spot.)
Adding a bat to this lineup makes too much sense. Now that the Padres know Laureano’s absence will last through the remainder of the season, they can begin sizing up their options.
Talk of the farm system’s demise -- as usual -- was greatly exaggerated. The Padres have prospects to trade if they choose to. Then again, they still need to put themselves in position to buy at the Deadline.
The best way to withstand Laureano’s absence is to add another similarly productive bat. But there’s not much sense in doing that if they’re on the outside of the playoff picture looking in come early August.
So for the next month and a half, the stars need to hit, and the role players need to find a way to fill the void in left.