By outrighting Tim Stauffer and Dustin Moseley on Friday, the Padres dropped two-fifths of their planned 2012 rotation from the 40-man roster. Both have opted for free agency, the Union-Tribune reports.
Stauffer had a 1.85 ERA in seven starts and 25 relief appearances for the Padres in 2010 and a 3.73 ERA in 31 starts in 2011, but he made just one appearance in 2012 before going down with an elbow injury. Season-ending surgery to repair his flexor tendon followed.
Moseley, likewise, made just one start this year. He underwent labrum surgery on his shoulder in April, and he probably won’t be ready for the start of 2013. The 3o-year-old made 20 starts for the Padres in 2011 and went 3-10 with a 3.30 ERA.
One imagines the Padres will try to re-sign Stauffer at a lesser salary than the $3.2 million he made this year. Edinson Volquez and Clayton Richard are their only veteran returning starters, and the team will surely listen to offers to both this winter. Andrew Cashner also figures to have a spot in the rotation if healthy, but the Padres will need to add depth, and pitchers might not be quite as eager to sign with the team now that the fences at Petco are coming in a bit.
