Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
Spread the love
Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
The San Diego Padres were officially eliminated from postseason contention in 2023. This has become the most disappointing season in team history.
With the results that occurred around the league on Friday, the Padres were officially eliminated from making the postseason. The 2023 season is a complete and utter failure after starting with immense hype and promise.
The offseason following the franchise’s third ever trip to the NLCS saw the Padres add perennial All-Star shortstop Xander Bogaerts. That, with the promise of the return of Fernando Tatis Jr., led fans and most experts to believe this could be a special season in San Diego.
All that came crashing down before summer officially started.
After the Padres fell below .500 on May 12, they were not able to reach that mark again until Friday. Much too little, far too late.
This was a season of inexplicable results. Chief among them is their 0-12 record in extra-inning games before Wednesday’s 5-2 win in 10 innings. Their 12 straight losses in extras to open the season tied an MLB record. If the Padres even win a handful of those games, they are right smack in the playoff picture.
They are also 8-23 in one-run games.
Basically, this team was historically, epically, un-clutch.
All this with the Padres having the second-best run differential in team history.
Where do the Padres go from here? That is the million-dollar question (or $250 million, referring to their payroll).
There are various theories of who will no longer be employed by the Padres when the season comes to its official end after next week. Rumors are swirling about manager Bob Melvin‘s status. Others question if A.J. Preller should be allowed to continue as president of baseball operations and general manager.
Some suggest just running it back with virtually the same squad in 2024 and just expect the luck to even out.
Even if they do that, Blake Snell and Josh Hader, among others, are slated to be free agents and due big paydays.
However, it’s clear there is an organizational flaw. Several players did not play up to their career averages. The starting rotation had a hard time staying healthy. 13 different pitchers ended up starting at least one game for San Diego this season.
Plus, the trade deadline acquisitions were mostly worthless.
Xander Bogaerts set a career-high in double plays grounded into and posted his worst batting average in six seasons.
Fernando Tatis Jr.‘s 48-homer pace in a 162-game season between 2019 and 2021 was other-worldly. This year, he has 25, with a career-worst batting average, on-base percentage, slugging, and OPS.
Yu Darvish posted a 4.56 ERA in 24 starts, the worst of his career. His health failed down the stretch, and its fair to wonder what kind of Darvish the Padres will get for the final five years of his recently signed extension.
Trent Grisham once again is batting below .200 and is batting .190 over the last two seasons combined.
Whatever happens, moving forward, the 2023 season can only be viewed as an epic failure and a scar on the franchise’s history.
Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.
