A.J. PRELLER

The only certainty about Major League Baseball's new rules for the 2023 season is that everyone is going to push and pull on them in search of an edge.

It has been an epic holiday season already for several major league teams and players a year after baseball trudged through an ugly labor dispute.

Xander Bogaerts’ $280 million, 11-year contact with the San Diego Padres has been finalized after the All-Star shortstop passed his physical.

Aaron Judge is returning to the New York Yankees on a $360 million, nine-year contract, and the other contenders for the AL MVP in free agency are moving on.

As a rare October rainstorm drenched Petco Park in the eighth inning, nobody at the packed downtown home of the San Diego Padres flinched.

San Diego Padres manager Bob Melvin says he reached out to suspended All-Star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. in a phone call.

Juan Soto has arrived at Petco Park promising to bring “good vibes” to the San Diego Padres and issuing a warning to opposing teams.

The trade market got busy ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, with the New York Yankees acquiring pitcher Frankie Montas from Oakland for four prospects.

Padres general manager A.

Patience is often rewarded for both free agents and general managers during most Major League Baseball offseasons.

The San Diego Padres say All-Star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. likely will need surgery for a broken left wrist and could miss up to three months.

The San Diego Padres announced the hiring of Bob Melvin as manager, bringing a veteran presence to an exciting team that imploded down the stretch.

Two septuagenarians will be on the bench when 77-year-old Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa and the Chicago White Sox face the Houston Astros and 72-year-old skipper Dusty Baker in their playoff opener Thursday.

The San Diego Padres have fired Jayce Tingler, who presided over the biggest collapse in franchise history just a season after finishing second in voting for NL Manager of the Year.

The slumping San Diego Padres have fired pitching coach Larry Rothschild.

José Altuve, Carlos Correa and the Astros have been heckled at Yankee Stadium, Cleveland, Phoenix and many other parks, the result of their sign-stealing scheme.

Both winless teams in the majors are defending division champions.

Now that Fernando Tatis Jr. has been placed on the injured list, the San Diego Padres hope their electrifying shortstop won’t be sidelined too long.

The San Diego Padres say shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. should be able to avoid surgery on his left shoulder.

Preller said Monday in announcing the two sides had finalized Tatis' $340 million, 14-year contract, the longest in baseball history. "He loves the franchise, he loves the city, he loves his teammates and he talked a lot about really wanting to get on the path of that statue contract." Most importantly to the Padres, Tatis has made baseball fun again in San Diego after years of futility. Baseball's biggest deal by dollars remains Mike Trout’s $426.5 million, 12-year contract signed with the Angels in March 2019. Tatis’ deal is the third-largest, also trailing Mookie Betts' $365 million, 12-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers that starts this season.

(AP Photo/Ron Schwane, file)When Joe Musgrove reported to spring training to start his sixth big league season, a brown and gold No. 44 San Diego Padres jersey was hanging in his locker. 44 is a nod to Jake Peavy, the fiery right-hander Musgrove grew up cheering for. "The last few days here, it just feels right.”Musgrove was obtained in a trade with rebuilding Pittsburgh on Jan. 19, the third big trade Padres general manager A.J. Musgrove said he was an energetic and emotional player as a kid, which is why he idolized Peavy, the 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner.

The San Diego Padres traded for another big arm on Tuesday night, Dec. 29, acquiring Darvish in a blockbuster deal with the Cubs. The Padres got Darvish, catcher Victor Caratini and cash from the Cubs for right-hander Zach Davies and four young minor leaguers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)SAN DIEGO – Yu Darvish found out things move fast when San Diego Padres general manager A.J. The Padres also got catcher Victor Caratini as part of the trade for right-hander Zach Davies and four young minor leaguers. “Actually, I wanted to throw against the Padres last season just to see how good I was.

San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr., center, celebrates with teammates after the Padres defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 4-0 in Game 3 of a National League wild-card baseball series Friday, Oct. 2, 2020, in San Diego. San Diego became the first team in baseball history to use eight or more pitchers in three straight postseason games. The Padres rewarded their long-suffering fans by winning one of the most meaningful games of any kind in San Diego in a long time. The city’s only major professional championship remains the San Diego Chargers’ 1963 AFL title. The Padres lost 4-1 to the Detroit Tigers in the 1984 World Series and were swept by the New York Yankees in the 1998 Fall Classic.

(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)SAN DIEGO – Given a chance to catch their breath after a crazy month and a half, the St. Louis Cardinals settled into the playoffs with yet another win against the San Diego Padres. San Diego native Tommy Edman singled and Goldschmidt homered to left. Dylan Carlson doubled, 38-year-old Yadier Molina hit an RBI single and Paul DeJong doubled before Matt Carpenter hit a sacrifice fly. Kim allowed Eric Hosmer’s sac fly in the first, Aaron Nola’s sac fly in the second and Tommy Pham’s RBI single in the third. Dexter Fowler hit an RBI single in the ninth off Trevor Rosenthal, who started his big league career with the Cardinals.

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Mike Clevinger works against a Los Angeles Angels batter during the first inning of a baseball game Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)SAN DIEGO – Starting pitchers Mike Clevinger and Dinelson Lamet were left off the San Diego Padres’ 28-man roster for their wild card series against the St. Louis Cardinals due to injuries that forced them out of their final regular-season starts. The Padres hoped the two would be healthy enough to pitch in the series against the St. Louis Cardinals. Lamet left his start at San Francisco on Friday with biceps tightness. Clevinger and Lamet were included on the taxi squad, as were left-handed prospects MacKenzie Gore and Ryan Weathers.

(AP Photo/Corey Sipkin)A look at what's happening around the majors on Saturday:PLAYOFF CHASEAfter manager Don Mattingly’s Marlins and the Cincinnati Reds clinched postseason spots, two NL playoff slots are still open with two days left in the regular season. They are hoping to get back on track heading into their playoff appearance since 2008, but the health of Jiménez is a concern. Acquired last month in a big trade with Cleveland, Clevinger left his start against the Angels on Wednesday after just one inning. “We have not ruled out anything for next week and the first round of the playoffs,” Padres general manager A.J. If Clevinger can’t pitch the playoff opener, Dinelson Lamet could start.

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Mike Clevinger works against a Los Angeles Angels batter during the first inning of a baseball game Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)San Diego pitcher Mike Clevinger got a cortisone shot for his ailing right elbow Friday and the Padres are hopeful he'll be OK for the playoffs. Clevinger, acquired last month in a big trade with Cleveland, left his start against the Angels on Wednesday after just one inning. “We have not ruled out anything for next week and the first round of the playoffs,” Padres general manager A.J. If Clevinger can’t pitch the playoff opener, that role could go to Dinelson Lamet.