SAN DIEGO -- The Padres are experimenting with their roster, and will continue to do so for the remainder of the season. San Diego was 17 1/2 games back in the National League West going into Tuesday night's game vs. the Angels, but has one of the best-ranked farm systems in baseball and various prospects eagerly awaiting their callup.
William Myers played third base Monday night, in his return from the disabled list, had had eight assists, one shy of a franchise record. Manager Andy Green confirmed that Christian Villanueva will see time at second base.
But there's one change the Padres won't be making.
Freddy Galvis -- in the midst of turning in a Gold Glove-caliber campaign in his first year as the Padres shortstop -- has fully embraced the mentorship role in the clubhouse.
As Myers and Villanueva adjust to potential new positions, and the Padres continue to try to solve the riddle of the most productive way to utilize their 25 players, Galvis will stay the course. 
"[It] makes things easier, just having a consistent anchor in the infield," Green said of Galvis. "That makes it easier to move guys around, knowing that somebody's going to be there to stabilize the whole collective group."
Galvis' .985 fielding percentage ranks third-best among MLB shortstops, and he's just three putouts (166) behind the Angels'  Andrelton Simmons for the highest total. He's also baseball's current iron man, with a streak of 284 consecutive games played, dating back to the final day of the 2016 season, when Galvis was with the Phillies. He has started every game for the Padres this season.
That makes sense, considering San Diego is the only team that doesn't carry a backup shortstop on its 25-man roster. Now he'll tack on a new duty to his daily regimen as he takes over a new-look infield.
"I just try to help those guys, keep those guys on the same page, try to know what they're thinking," Galvis said. "I was in that position before when I was moving positions. It was kind of hard sometimes.
"Communication is the most important thing," he added. "That's something we've been doing. I talked yesterday a lot with Wil about what he was thinking, and all of that stuff. I try to help him anticipate some plays and anticipate who's running."
Galvis has seen a change in his offensive production, something the 28-year-old isn't known for. In the bottom of the fourth of Tuesday night's 7-3 loss, Galvis sent a solo shot off of Angels starter Jaime Barria into the T-Mobile Home Run deck for his third consecutive game with a homer -- a career-high streak.

"Freddy's been swinging the bat really well since he came back from the All-Star break," Green said before Tuesday's game. "I thought the at-bats were really good for Freddy, across the board. … His at-bats overall have been markedly better over the past month."
The shot was his 10th home run of the year. Galvis also leads the team in RBIs with 49.
Galvis will be a free agent at the end of the season, and with highly touted infield prospects Fernando Tatis (No. 1 ranked prospect on the club, according to MLB Pipeline) and Luis Urias (No. 4) knocking on the door, there isn't a guarantee the Padres will have room to re-sign him. Green has indicated that he would like to see Galvis stay, and Galvis said the same.
I like the players, I like the coaching staff, I like the city, I like the team, I love everything about that," Galvis said. "I want to be here for a few more years, so we'll see how that goes."

Worth noting
Myers notched a perfect 9-9 fielding day in his debut at third base.
He displayed a strong tendency to backhand plays in his debut, though Green isn't worried.
"[Nolan] Arenado is clearly the best third baseman in [the National League]," Green said. "You watch him play third base there'd be some stuff you wouldn't teach. But there's God-given ability to get a play done, the way other people wouldn't.
"Wil's backhand is very confident," he added. "When you watch him take ground balls, he's very confident in just using his hands. What we don't want to have him do is just become mechanical. We don't want to turn him into a robot. We want him to be an athlete out there. He's going to backhand balls that other people wouldn't. I don't have an issue with that, because I've got confidence he's going to make the plays."
If Myers is able to find his footing at third base, it would clear space in a packed outfield. Moving Myers to third and slotting Villanueva at second would allow Hunter Renfroe, Manuel Margot, Travis Jankowski and Franmil Reyes to see considerably more time in the outfield. It would also keep more power bats in the lineup, something the Padres desperately need. Their 110 total home runs are the third-lowest in the National League.