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MLB • 12 months ago

San Diego Padres 2015 Position Preview: Starting Pitchers

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San Diego Padres 2015 Position Preview: Starting Pitchers

The San Diego Padres are ready to compete again in 2015. The front office has added some nice bats, but the starting rotation is still the team's biggest strength. Here's a look at the team's starters for the upcoming season.

5. Brandon Morrow/Odrisamer Despaigne

5. Brandon Morrow/Odrisamer Despaigne

The fifth starter is still up for grabs between Morrow and Despaigne. While Morrow holds the edge in experience, he's injury-prone and has compiled subpar results as a starter in his career. Though Despaigne is still technically a rookie, he started 16 games for the Padres last season and held an ERA of 3.36. He's also looking much stronger in spring training than Morrow.

4. Ian Kennedy

4. Ian Kennedy

When Kennedy is your No. 4 starter, that is a solid pitching staff. While he had an off year in 2013, Kennedy got back to his old self last season. The 30-year-old vet racked up 13 wins, 207 strikeouts with a 3.63 ERA in 2014.

3. Tyson Ross

3. Tyson Ross

The Padres robbed the Oakland Athletics in the 2012 trade that sent Ross to San Diego for basically nothing. Last season Ross struck out 195 batters in 195 innings and finished the season with a 2.81 ERA.

2. Andrew Cashner

2. Andrew Cashner

Cashner only pitched 123.1 innings in 2014 due to elbow, shoulder and neck injuries. Through those injury battles he still managed a 2.55 ERA. Cashner has looked pretty healthy in spring training with 14 strikeouts in 18.1 innings and an ERA of 2.45.

1. James Shields

1. James Shields

The Padres finally have a legitimate ace for the top of the rotation. Shields hasn't pitched fewer than 200 innings since his rookie season in 2006 and averaged 223 innings per year during that span. Last season, he won 14 games and held an ERA of 3.21 with the Kansas City Royals. Moving to a pitcher-friendly park in the National League could give Shields' numbers a boost in the upcoming season.

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Aaron Charles is a writer for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter

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