I’m not sure any two teams in baseball feel like they’ve been put together in opposite fashion than the San Diego Padres and the Milwaukee Brewers, and that’s a testament to each front office.

The Padres are the ultimate stars-and-scrubs squad, built by a leader who will give up any scrap of prospect depth he can muster to acquire elite talent and powerful skills. They’re the brainchild of your least favorite rival in your fantasy baseball league, constantly tweaking, making deals that make you wonder if they’ll ever be competitive in the future while bringing in players whom you know are going to produce.

The Brewers are brilliant and future-facing, converting no-name draftees and international talent into homegrown contributors, and eschewing the chase of superstar-level talent in the hopes of striking gold on a few of their own, while surrounding them with consistent contributors and cycling through both their own and other team’s spare parts. They constantly reload with players you’ve put aside or never heard of, just like the other least favorite rival in your fantasy baseball league … the one who has a spreadsheet to keep track of his spreadsheets, and always snipes your pick on the waiver wire or pulls a rabbit out of his hat.

… these two teams also play one of the more aesthetically pleasing brands of baseball I’ve seen this year, so we’re in for a treat.