Reason for optimism: From an ownership perspective, at least, the team's bottom line is going to improve.
Reason for pessimism: Ask Seattle fans how much fun it is watching Fernando Rodney protect one-run leads.
Across baseball, the position player who generates the least amount of offensive production is the catcher. Baseball Prospectus tells us that in 2015, across the majors, catchers produced a batting line of .240/.304/.379. A look at full-time catchers last year reveals that Caleb Joseph, who hit .234/.299/.394, is as close as anyone to representing an average catcher. So, to summarize, Caleb Joseph embodies an average player at the worst offensive position on the field.
Last year, the San Diego Padres spent more than $100 million on salary for the first time in franchise history, and what did they get for their efforts?
A lineup of eight Caleb Josephs.