Padres Report

Sandy Alderson held his weekly interview on XX Sports Radio in San Diego. Here are a few things he covered:



1. Clay Hensley Update - Should be ready for Spring Training, if he's not 100% by the time pitchers and catchers report, he should be shortly thereafter.





2. Matt Antonelli, Chase Headley and Scott Hairston got their first reps in center field during workouts at Petco Park, which started today.





3. Padres are not "auditioning" center fielders per say, but the Padres did want to get a look at young prospect Matt Antonelli in center. They wanted to see if Scott Hairston could be a capable backup to Jim Edmonds in center field.





4. The Padres' decision on not bringing Mike Cameron back was not a money issue. It had to do with the commitment they had already made to Jim Edmonds.





5. Alderson was asked if the Padres would have traded for Edmonds had they known Cameron would sign a 1-year deal. He didn't fully respond to the question, but he mentioned they needed to get better against right-handed pitching so they wanted to add a left-handed bat in the lineup. They needed a center fielder at the time of the trade for Edmonds, there was no indication at that point that Cameron would come back on a 1-year deal.



Padres don't regret not bringing back Mike Cameron.





6. The Padres have had discussed a multi-year deal with Khalil Greene but there's a gap between the two parties. According to Alderson, Greene's camp has little interest in a multi-year deal in San Diego. They could sign a 2-year deal that would cover arbitration and 1 year of free agency.





7. Arbitration hearings start on the 1st of February but stretch out a few weeks. Salary numbers will be exchanged on Friday for players that have not settled with their respective teams. Once numbers are exchanged, the arbitration hearing dates will be set.





8. Alderson talked about Matt Antonelli, saying he thought Matt needed 1 more year of minor league ball, they did not want to rush him up. They thought it was better to go with a veteran, like Iguchi, and Matt will be the #1 backup if something happens to Tad.





9. Alderson was very vocal about not being a fan of "winter ball" and the Arizona Fall League. He's of the opinion that the pitching isn't that great, players don't get near the amount of at-bats that will do them any good.





10. Chase Headley is a good possibility to be the Padres' opening day starter in 2008 against Roy Oswalt and the Astros.