This story was excerpted from AJ Cassavell’s Padres Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

SAN DIEGO -- It certainly didn’t end the way they’d hoped. But the Padres took an organizational step forward in 2024. After the disappointment of the previous campaign, San Diego emerged again as a bona fide contender and one of the sport’s most complete teams.

Now the tricky part -- building on that success and taking that next step in 2025.

“We have a great nucleus of guys that are under contract that are coming back, that are having good, productive offseasons, that are excited about the opportunity for 2025,” manager Mike Shildt said at last month’s Winter Meetings. “That's really exciting for us. Now it's up to [general manager A.J. Preller] and beyond to figure out what the other pieces look like.

“We know virtually no club is going to be able to run it back. I think that's normal with expectations relative to the industry. But … our core is intact. Excited to have a good offseason.”

Here’s a quick look ahead to 2025:

One realistic free-agent target who could still be a fit: Roki Sasaki
The Padres have needs elsewhere. Several. But their path to contending in 2025 and beyond will get a lot clearer if they can land the 23-year-old Japanese ace.

Sasaki was posted early last month, and he is expected to sign once the international window opens in mid-January. There are any number of reasons to believe he'd be an ideal fit in San Diego.

He's looking for a team with a chance to win. His agent, Joel Wolfe, has hinted Sasaki might be more inclined to sign for a small- or mid-market team. The Padres are an organization with deep ties to Japan. Plus, they've proven themselves excellent at pitching development -- particularly in managing the workloads of emerging aces under pitching coach Ruben Niebla.

The Padres could still use a corner bat, a catcher and an additional starter. But for a rotation with serious question marks, there's no fit more ideal than Sasaki.

One player poised to have a breakout season: Jeremiah Estrada
Has Estrada already broken out? Well, sort of. He broke strikeout records. He pitched crucial postseason innings. It was quite a year for an offseason waiver claim.

Here's guessing Estrada takes another step forward in 2025. There's no reason he can't be one of the most dominant relievers in baseball. His stuff is untouchable -- an elite, high-octane fastball; a tight, biting slider; and that filthy changeup/splitter he calls a “chitter.”

The back end of the Padres’ bullpen is already one of the best in baseball. Robert Suarez and Jason Adam are established relief arms coming off excellent seasons. But there's a case that Estrada might be the most dominant of the bunch.

Prospect to watch in 2025: Kash Mayfield, Boston Bateman, Humberto Cruz
Sorry, I’m cheating a bit. But the Padres' "prospect to watch" is more a concept than a specific player. They need to reboot their system after making a flurry of trades in-season last year. This trio of pitchers -- each entering their first full season in pro ball -- could be the ticket to doing so.

As they were dealing away their higher-level pitching talent last season, the Padres were simultaneously replenishing at the lower levels. They spent their first two Draft picks on high-school lefties Mayfield (25th overall) and Bateman (52nd) after signing Cruz out of Mexico. That trio comprises the Padres' Nos. 3, 4 and 5 prospects, per MLB Pipeline (Mayfield, Bateman, Cruz, in that order). It's possible they all open the season in a rotation together at Single-A Lake Elsinore.

As things stand, the Padres’ system is centered around two premier prospects -- catcher Ethan Salas (No. 1 prospect, No. 19 overall) and shortstop Leodalis De Vries (No. 2 prospect, No. 28 overall). Few doubt the potential of that duo. But the Padres need a fuller pipeline and these three young pitchers hold the key.

One prediction for the new year: Back in the postseason
It's something this franchise has struggled with. The Padres haven't been able to build on strong seasons. After reaching the playoffs in 2020 and '22, they followed with wildly disappointing campaigns in '21 and '23, respectively.

This year should be different. For one, things seem a bit more stable in the clubhouse. The core of the team should be back with a number of stars still in their primes and Jackson Merrill only just entering his. Plus, there should be no shortage of hunger after the team came oh-so-close to knocking off the eventual-champion Dodgers in the NLDS.

The Padres haven't reached consecutive postseasons since 2005-06. No reason they can’t change that unsightly fact in '25.