SAN DIEGO -- New Padres hitting coach Matt Stairs once preached, somewhat famously, to "Swing like you live: hard."
It's a witty one-liner, no doubt. But it tells only half the story. See, Stairs' mindset at the plate is, indeed, to swing hard. Not necessarily "often."
In San Diego, Stairs inherits the most free-swinging lineup in the Majors. Entering the 2018 season, the Padres' biggest challenge is to turn around their on-base woes, after ranking last in the Majors in OBP in each of the past two seasons.
"It's a very athletic group that I'm joining with the Padres," Stairs said.