by Juan Leer

Created on: February 23, 2007   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

In 2007, the Padres are looking for a second straight division title and another trip to the playoffs, but it won't be easy. The NL West looks to be improved, and 88 wins might not be good enough this year to get to postseason play.

Offensively, they don't really have any stars, but they have a lot of solid hitters. At catcher, Josh Bard had a very nice season last year and will look to continue that. Elsewhere in the infield, Adrian Gonzalez looks like a young star at 1B after hitting 24 HR last season. Khalil Greene is also back, and he is one of the best SS in the NL. The addition of Marcus Giles should help offensively and defensively, as he is a good all-around player.

In the outfield, Brian Giles is getting older but he is still a productive hitter. He's an OBP machine, though the power is dropping. Mike Cameron strikes out a lot, but he's a decent hitter and plays very good defense in CF. There will be a battle for the LF job with guys like Jose Cruz Jr. and Termel Sledge, so the competition should be a good thing.

Pitching, though, is where the Padres win games. Jake Peavy is an ace and a great strikeout pitcher. Chris Young developed in a very good pitcher last year, Clay Hensley was solid, and they have some veterans at the backend. Greg Maddux and David Wells are old, but I think there's still a little gas left in the tank.

So once again the pieces are in place for the Padres to make a run at the NL West Division Title and another trip to the playoffs. It should be a very tight race, but with Peavy and Young at the top of the rotation, the Pads have a great shot.

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