Updated: Dec 8, 2005, 9:37 AM

Vote: What should Padres do this offseason?


 Trevor Hoffman
How much does Trevor Hoffman have left?
The San Diego Padres are the reigning NL West champions. They also finished last season just two games above .500. Talk about being betwixt and between.

The Padres had a good enough roster to get the team to the postseason, but clearly it wasn't good enough to truly rank among the game's elite teams. And the bad news is it's going to take some work to even get back to that foundation, let alone begin to fill holes. Key players like Brian Giles, Ramon Hernandez and Trevor Hoffman are free agents, and all are likely to draw attention from other teams.

So what should the Padres do? Focus on retaining last season's key pieces and hope another year together produces a few more wins? Or let some of those pieces walk and play the market in free agency and trades?

  • Click here for ESPN.com's Hot Stove coverage
    • 1) What do you think of San Diego's current talent base?
    • 2) How would you approach this offseason?
    • 3) Which of their own free agents should be the Padres' highest priority?
    • 4) Can the Padres, who ranked 16th in payroll last season, afford to pay Brian Giles substantially more than the $8 million he earned in 2005?
    • 5) Does Mike Cameron represent a significant upgrade on the combination of Dave Roberts and Xavier Nady in center field?
    • 6) What should the Padres do at third base?
    • 7) How much longer can free agent Trevor Hoffman, 38, be an elite closer?
    • 8) What should the Padres do with second-base prospect Josh Barfield (.310, 15 HR, 72 RBI, .819 OPS at Triple-A Portland)?
    • 9) Which mid-level starting pitcher would you most actively pursue in free agency?
    • 10) Should the Padres use a big part of their budget on a top-tier free agent pitcher?

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