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Adding another arm is Padres' Prior-ity
By: DAN HAYES - Staff Writer
Former Cubs star signs one-year deal, could pitch by May | ∞
SAN DIEGO -- The Padres did a little belated holiday shopping on Wednesday when they added former 18-game winner Mark Prior.
The former Chicago Cubs pitcher signed a one-year deal with the Padres with a $1 million base salary for 2008. The contract could be worth $5.5 million if Prior -- who likely won't pitch in the big leagues until the middle or end of May -- hits every benchmark, including making up to 30 starts and staying on the 25-man roster all season.
Prior, a San Diego native, hasn't pitched since Aug. 10, 2006, after undergoing surgery for a torn labrum. The 27-year-old right-hander became a free agent after the Cubs didn't offer him a contract Dec. 12.
"I'm excited," Prior said in a conference call. "There are so many things right about coming home to San Diego. ... I want to re-establish myself as a competitive pitcher in this league."
The second overall pick in the 2002 amateur baseball draft, Prior went 18-6 with a 2.43 ERA for Chicago in 2003, but has been limited to 57 starts since. He finished 2006 with a 1-6 mark and a 7.21 ERA in nine starts and finally underwent shoulder surgery in 2007.
However, the Padres were encouraged by the progress report of Dr. James Andrews gave them.
Prior is currently throwing from 105 feet on flat ground and will soon move to 120. He said the next move is to throw off flat ground from 60 feet before potentially throwing off a mound by mid-to-late January.
If everything remains on schedule, Prior would begin to throw batting practice five weeks after that, with the ultimate goal of reaching the majors sometime in May.
"I feel now that I have things taken care of," Prior said. "It's going to take time to get the flow going and get confidence back ... it takes time and a number of consecutive starts to get your confidence back, your swagger back."
Prior's agent, John Boggs, said as many as 14 teams showed strong interest in Prior, and as many as seven may have offered bigger deals. The Astros, Cardinals, Rangers and Mets were among the more aggressive suitors, according to Prior.
But the Padres were the right situation for Prior, because they're offering him time to heal and are only asking him to step into the No. 5 role in an already strong rotation. The team will also allow Prior to become a free agent in 2009, while several of the Padres' competitors wanted an option year.
"That was all part of the logic of the decision where he wanted to be," Boggs said. "This created the perfect scenario for a great number of reasons. If Mark is healthy and ready, they're definitely, hopefully, going to reap the rewards of that patience."
Even though the Padres seemed like a perfect fit, the front office wasn't sure if Prior was sold on San Diego. General manager Kevin Towers, a neighbor of Prior's, mentioned that he had run into him several times, and Prior had feigned interest in returning home.
But whether it would happen was uncertain.
"We weren't sure," said Jeff Kingston, the Padres' director of baseball operations. "We knew he wanted to come here, but other teams were very aggressive."
What the Padres are certain of is that if Prior is healthy, their rotation would be tough to beat. But manager Bud Black emphasized there will be no rushing of Prior and that no timetable has been set.
"Whenever he's able to take the mound, we feel as though we have an impact guy," Black said. "We feel as though we're very solid (in the rotation) with four guys who will come to camp healthy and ready to go ... We feel as though the shoulder and his body will let us know when he's ready to pitch. There's no sense trying to speed up the healing process."
-- Contact staff writer Dan Hayes at dhayes@nctimes.com.
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Don wrote on Dec 26, 2007 11:12 PM:Ah, yes! Prior's prior injury (no pun intended) gives the Padres that extra arm for cheap! The team still does not have outfielders that can either be a leadoff or power hitter.
The Padres Modus Operandi on how to get players.
1. They should be young, talented with a lot of potential so they are still cheap.
2. They should be a big name who is past their prime so they are cheap.
3. They should be a big name who has had injuries so they are cheap.
Anything else I missed?
MG wrote on Dec 27, 2007 10:03 AM:... Revenue is up this year and they still will not spend any money on players. They get a center field that is past his prime and cannot stay healthy to go along with a pitcher who might not be ready until June (if he can even pitch again). Does anyone really think this team can compete with the Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, New York, etc? Remember this team did not even make the playoffs last year. The Padres said when Petco was built they will spend money on players. They were 24th in money that was spent on players.
usanaman wrote on Dec 27, 2007 10:11 AM:I think that you forgot to say that the padres are cheap!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MG wrote on Dec 27, 2007 10:56 AM:I have a question to NCTimes, since when we in society cannot be critical of an organization [Editor's note: As with the letters policy, we generally do not allow writers to encourage boycotts of commercial businesses. You are welcome to rephrase your statement.]
Cheap? wrote on Dec 27, 2007 12:39 PM:A million dollars a year with bonus $, plus plenty of time to heal; I don't consider that cheap. What one of us would not be happy with a million dollars to throw a few balls? And don't forget pensions, health care for free and so on.
Why are you saying cheap?
Don wrote on Dec 27, 2007 3:29 PM:You're missing the point, Mr. Cheap?.
The Padres will not spend money on the real money players that will take them over the hump. They only spend and HOPE that the player has enough gas in the tank to get them to the postseason.
Do you think they can sign an Alex Rodriguez or a Vladimir Guerrero for that kind of money, a million dollars a year?
All the Padres care about is how to beat the other NL West teams in order to show a somewhat commitment to winning. After all, to win the division guarantees playoffs. However, the chances of winning the World Series is very slim.
I don't know about you but there is a difference in EXPECTING to win than HOPING to win.
Until some of you fans realize that, you will continue to be suckers in this laughable game called Baseball, where only the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees have a monopoly in having a chance to win every year.
Hector wrote on Dec 28, 2007 2:43 AM:This is not the NFL, and until we have a real Comish, revenue sharing will continue to be a joke. The Padres cannot compete with the big markets and they have to build differently. Support it or get out of the bandwagon, this is about supporting your local team, not critizing them. If you don't have the money to support them, watch it on TV and don't ruin it with your comments. Since Petco opened the team has been a contender, or did you forget the teams we had from 1999 t0 2003? or how about those from 1986 to 1995? DEAL WITH IT. this is the reality of San Diego Padres Baseball.
Don wrote on Dec 28, 2007 10:51 AM:You've just made my point. Baseball is a joke because of this revenue sharing. The reason why they continue to do this is because there are still fans like you who continue to support it. If you stop supporting it, then they might start thinking about making it more competitive for everyone.
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