Actually, Spring Training will run seven weeks with this being a World Baseball Classic year, though the Padres might need every bit of that time to settle an important question:

Who exactly will be on the pitching staff in 2009?

For the first time he can remember, Kevin Towers -- the longest-tenured general manager in the Major Leagues -- will preside over 35 pitchers when the pitchers and catchers report to Arizona on Feb. 14.

"I don't think we've ever had 30 arms. But we've got 35 right now, 34 healthy ones. ... I would say that 35 in a normal year is too many. But since [Trevor] Hoffman is gone and [Heath] Bell is learning a new role, it's going to be a good time to look at the extra guys." Towers said.

Pitching coach Darren Balsley and manager Bud Black figure certainly figure to be busy during the first two weeks of workouts in Peoria and when Cactus League games begin on Feb. 25, trying to find innings for everyone.

The Padres currently have 22 pitchers on their 40-man roster, though only 21 are healthy as reliever Mike Adams continues to recover from offseason shoulder surgery. He won't return until the All-Star break at the earliest.

The rest of the pitchers are non-roster invitees such as Kevin Correia and Chris Britton and a host of others whose names haven't been released.

The Padres will catch a minor break, if you can call it that, when projected Opening Day starter Jake Peavy - well, if he's still with the team - joins Team USA for the Classic on March 2. But Towers would just as soon have Peavy in camp, though it has very little to do with his concern for possible injury.

"It hurts. You hate to have one of your core players not around. [Catcher] Nick Hundley and Peavy haven't worked a lot together. And he hasn't worked at all with [new backup catcher Henry] Blanco. It's huge for a guy like Hundley to catch Jake as often as he can," Towers said.

But from Peavy's absence comes opportunity for others to impress and possibly win jobs on a staff where there are openings, both in the rotation and bullpen.

"Losing some of these guys to the WBC, it will be good in that some guys will get some innings. The more looks they get, the more innings they pitch, hopefully it will make it easier for us to make decisions," Towers said.

Aside from Peavy, Chris Young and Cha Seung Baek, the Padres still need to fill the last two spots in the rotation. Correia will get a look, as will Josh Geer, Wade LeBlanc and others.

In the bullpen, Bell takes over for Hoffman as closer and Britton will get a look as a setup man, as will Cla Meredith, Mark Worrell and others. The bullpen figures to have the most potential openings.