Matt Antonelli

The bad news is in 2008, Antonelli struggled mightily at Triple-A Portland and even more so during a September audition with the big league club. The good news is while he struggled to hit over .200, his walk rate was excellent and his contact rate was very good. Antonelli has shown a nice combination of power and speed in the lower minors and is still in the middle infield picture for the Padres. He'll be given another opportunity to compete for the second base job, but he will need an exceptional spring.

At the end of the 2007 season, the Padres indicated that Antonelli was the favorite to win their starting second base job in 2008. However, his stock dipped with a poor performance in the Arizona Fall League and now he is likely to spend 2008 in the minors. He split his 2007 campaign between High-A and Double-A, accumulating a .307 average, 21 homers, 78 RBI and 28 steals. Antonelli faltered during the Arizona Fall League, hitting .214 (12-for-56) with zero homers, five RBI and zero steals. The Padres are still hopeful that the 22-year-old will develop into a starter at the major league level in 2009.

Antonelli, San Diego's 2006 first-round pick, displayed disappointing power numbers in Short-A. The third baseman did not hit any homers in 205 at-bats and knocked in just 22 runs. Late in the season, he saw some time at second base. Antonelli was viewed as a polished hitter coming out of Wake Forest, but he is a long way from the majors.