Spring training games are officially underway, which means that we’re closing in on Opening Day.
The regular season will begin on March 30.
And with Opening Day fast approaching, fans, players, coaches, umpires, and media members alike are all feeling the excitement for the new season.
The San Diego Padres are a team that has a lot to look forward to in 2023.
They signed some key players in Xander Bogaerts, Matt Carpenter, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and Nelson Cruz.
These additions have manager Bob Melvin feeling pretty excited with spring camp underground and the start of the regular season approach.
On Sunday, Melvin caught up with analysts Yonder Alonso and Stephen Nelson and discussed his excitement for the 2023 season.
“We’re just a better team all the way around and the leadership quality is off the charts.”@Parents Manager Bob Melvin speaks about the leadership that the veterans acquired in over the offseason have brought early on at camp.#SpringTraining | @StephenNelson | @YonderalonsoU pic.twitter.com/TrlLAPOl4t
—MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 27, 2023
Melvin focused on the fact that each of the players that the Padres signed this offseason are proven veteran leaders who have been a part of winning teams before.
Wacha and Carpenter were both teammates with the St. Louis Cardinals and have a great winning experience.
Melvin expressed his optimism about having made these moves to add to a roster that was already very talented and carried them to the NLCS last season.
The Padres did fall short in five games against the Philadelphia Phillies, but their busy offseason has them in a position to make some more strides.
Melvin even said that the Padres are a better team all around and that leadership quality is “off the charts.”
San Diego may in fact be the favorites to win the NL West after the Los Angeles Dodgers, who they beat in the NLDS, had a relatively quiet offseason.
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