SAN DIEGO -- It has already been an eventful offseason in San Diego. But there are clues everywhere that general manager A.J. Preller hasn't finished his maneuvering.
The Padres have quite a few holes to address on their roster, and our last Inbox of 2019 focuses on how they might be filled:
Which is most likely for the Padres to acquire before Opening Day -- a starting pitcher, an outfielder, a middle infielder or a catcher?
-- @PadresPHX
All four are areas in which Preller is actively looking to improve. Here's a quick breakdown of those four positions and the chances the Padres might add at each spot:
Outfield: 60 percent
The Padres have landed Tommy Pham and Trent Grisham. But they would like to bring a big-time bat to their lineup -- perhaps Pittsburgh's Starling Marte? The easiest place to find an impact bat is in the outfield.
Starter: 50 percent
The Padres seem unwilling to meet the demands for big-name starting pitchers this winter. Internally, they're pretty confident in their rotation of the future, with top prospects MacKenzie Gore and Luis Patiño as options. But the current group could use more depth, and Preller is still open to making an addition.
Middle infield: 40 percent
When the Padres landed Jurickson Profar from Oakland last month, they did so with the expectation he would compete for the second-base job. It wasn't necessarily his to lose. There's a decent chance the Padres look to add some competition. But a thin second-base market might be holding Preller back.
Catcher: 25 percent
The Padres' catching situation remains very intriguing. There's reason to believe a rotation of Francisco Mejía and Austin Hedges could work nicely in 2020. But there's also reason to believe the Padres could do better. Preller, who has highly regarded catching prospect Luis Campusano waiting in the wings, will explore all of his options.
What do you believe turned the Padres away from pursuing Corey Kluber and Madison Bumgarner?
-- Glenn T., Santee, Calif.
Money is the easy answer. Kluber is owed $35.5 million over the next two seasons and Bumgarner just made $85 million for five.
But there's a bigger reason the Padres shied away. The career trajectories of Bumgarner and Kluber don't match up with the team's long-term plans. Sure, the Padres are looking to build a contender next season. But they want that contention window stretching throughout the decade.
Kluber is 33 and coming off an injury-riddled 2019 season. He would be gone after '21. Bumgarner, meanwhile, probably still has a few more effective seasons. But the back end of his contract could be burdensome -- and it will come at a time when San Diego will be looking to extend some of its younger players.
There's still room for the Padres to spend a bit of money this winter, especially if they can move Wil Myers. But the club already likes the long-term outlook of its rotation -- enough to pass on Kluber and Bumgarner, giving those rotation opportunities to some intriguing prospects.
Will [the next player the Padres acquire] be a free agent or a trade acquisition?
-- David L., San Diego
Basically a toss-up here. The Padres are looking for bullpen and rotation depth, and they're exploring all possible avenues.
But if we're looking at this question through the lens of big-name acquisitions only, it's significantly more likely that the Padres make a trade. They aren't really interested in any of the free-agent pitching options, and they prefer not to commit longer than necessary to the available outfield bats.
Meanwhile, on the trade front, there's a belief that the Padres can basically land whoever they want. Their farm system is good enough and deep enough, and they've got a handful of controllable big league pieces to supplement any deal.
If the Padres want an impact bat, they're going to have to pay up. Right now, it seems more likely that they do so with prospects than with a long-term commitment to a free agent.
Would A.J. and Jayce Tingler be comfortable putting Fernando Tatis Jr. in center field, and do his unusual amount of errors at shortstop last year cause any concern?
-- Mike, Ramona, Calif.
Tatis' 18 errors -- which led all shortstops at the time of his back injury -- really weren't cause for too much concern. He was a 20-year-old playing shortstop in the big leagues, which is a really, really hard thing to do. Tatis showed plenty of promise with his range and his arm. And his minus-2 defensive runs saved is close enough to the middle of the pack. If he cleans up a few things, the Padres believe very strongly in Tatis' future as a shortstop.
The recent chatter about a potential move to center field stems from trade rumors about Francisco Lindor. The Padres would love to add a bat of Lindor's caliber, and they've checked with the Indians. But there's no reason to believe those talks have progressed past preliminary stages.
But let's play out this hypothetical: Say the Padres were to trade for Lindor, who is unquestionably one of the best defensive shortstops in the game. Then, yes, they'd at least consider moving Tatis. Whether it’s second base or center field, it won’t be too difficult a transition, given Tatis' otherworldly athleticism. But that's a conversation for a different day.
AJ Cassavell covers the Padres for MLB.com.