as their twenty-third manager. He declared quite confidently that he thought he was taking over a championship-caliber team. He expressed his intention to win a title in memory of the late owner, Peter Seidler, with great passion.

Shidlt moved from the macro to the micro during his second media appearance as the Padres’ new manager on Tuesday at the MLB Winter Meetings, revealing crucial information regarding the makeup of the team’s roster and coaching staff.

MLB Hot Stove Monitor: Confusion

What is known regarding Shildt’s availability is as follows:

1. The defense arrangement is still up in the air.
The infield comes first:At shortstop, second base, or third base, Ha-Seong Kim is one of the best defenders in baseball. Although he spent much of the previous season playing second base, there has been a lot of conjecture that he could replace Bogaerts at shortstop.

Shildt was definitely not prepared to reveal the strategy, if that was indeed it. Later this month, he and Bogaerts will meet; perhaps that encounter will provide some insight. For now, though, Shildt had nothing but positive things to say about Bogaerts’s shortstop abilities.

Tatis won the platinum glove in right field for the outfield. Should the Padres trade Trent Grisham, could he move to center field? Heck, if the Padres decided to keep Grisham but platoon him, could he move to center field on a part-time basis?

Shildt stated, “The good news is we are certain he could go over it and know he could accomplish it at a high level.” We already have a center fielder deserving of a gold glove, which is excellent news. That’s exceptional as well.

2. Ryan Flaherty declined to become a bench coach
Last season, Flaherty led hitting and served as the team’s bench coach. He was a finalist for the manager position. Following Shildt’s appointment, Flaherty departed San Diego to take a bench coaching position with the Cubs.

When questioned directly on Tuesday, Shildt admitted that he had given Flaherty the job offer in San Diego.

Of course, Shildt replied. “Ryan and I got along well and had wonderful talks. I believe he’s fantastic. I believe he was moving on to pursue other chances.”

25th overall by the Padres in the 2024 MLB Draft

The Padres now have openings at bench coach, lead hitting coach, and third base coach as a result of Flaherty’s departure. The Padres are currently looking for a bench coach and a third-base coach, as Shildt quickly pointed out. But a coach who hits the lead? They might be happy to continue working with Flaherty’s coworkers from the previous season, Oscar Bernard and Scott Coolbaugh.

“We already have a wonderful team of people working with our hitting staff,” Shildt remarked. “We are resolving that. We are working through a number of things at the organization because there are a few other balls in the air. However, the employees come first on the list.

3. Shildt has no desire to discuss 2023.
Yes, Shildt served as an adviser for the team during the unsatisfactory 2023 campaign. However, he has declined the chance to go into detail about what went wrong at every stop.

“Once more, we’ve discussed the past,” Shildt remarked on Tuesday. “I believe it’s more important to be proactive and in alignment with future developments.”

That does not imply that Shildt is completely eschewing the mistakes of the previous season. He brings it up in his talks with the players. However, he would rather that the assessments of the ’23 campaign be positive.

“It’s a more comprehensive view—part of what ’23 represented,” Shildt remarked. “We aim to document both our strengths and our opportunities for improvement. [I’m still in awe of our clubhouse’s leadership, the caliber of our membership, and their commitment to cooperating and excelling.]