PEORIA, Ariz. -- What a difference a year makes.
In February 2018, Joey Lucchesi and Eric Lauer reported to big league camp for the first time as wide-eyed prospects with almost no chance of making the Padres' Opening Day roster. Neither did, but it wasn't long before they arrived in San Diego. Lucchesi was an injury replacement on the second day of the season, and Lauer had joined the club by mid-April.
"That happened quick," Padres catcher Austin Hedges said. "I had four big league camps before I made the team. Your first camp, you're a little nervous, you're trying to figure out if you belong -- normal human emotions.