"While the Padres have said they won't grant Seattle permission to speak with Kevin Towers, two people close to Towers said they still think he could end up as the Mariners GM. Those same people say that Towers should want out of San Diego because the Padres don't have a good chance of getting better anytime soon. There's a fear that San Diego will have no money to spend on the free-agent market this winter, in part because owner John Moores' wife filed for divorce a few months back."