Fun Fact: Only one team wins the World Series every year. Which means 29 teams don’t win the final game of the year which according to Moneyball means their season didn’t fucking matter. When a team gets eliminated from winning the World Series I’ll do a profile of their season.
Today’s Team….San Diego Padres
How Did They Get Eliminated
After tying the series up at 1 game a piece the Padres would fall to the Cubs 3-1 in Game Three of the Wild Card Series.
A lot of controversy on this one, but as many will say, don’t let the umps be the reason you lose the game. Through the first 8 innings they had 6 hits and had stranded all of them. They got a lead off home run in the 9th, but still needed to find a way to scratch two more across to keep the game going. Bogaerts would strike out looking on a pitch that was ball four. The next two batters would walk, but Kittridge would shut the door and the Cubs move on to face the Brewers.
Overall the offense laid dormant for the Padres as they scored only 1 run in Game 1 and only 3 runs in a Game 2 victory. The series really showcased the bullpens for both of these teams but it was the Cubs that ultimately came out on top.
What Do I Know About This Team Because I Only Follow the Brewers and Pay Attention to Playoff Baseball?
When you do a lot of research around teams writing these articles you pick up little things here and there about teams. One thing that stood out about the Padres was that they laid down a lot of sacrifice bunts. In most scenarios I would tell you that being able to get a bunt down and play small ball is a good formula for winning postseason games. Here are a few of those reasons:
Moving runners over late in game can mean a single scores a run, or a double guarantees scoring a run. In Game 3 with 2 outs the Padres hit a double with a runner on 1st and they didn’t score. I didn’t watch the game I didn’t watch highlights, but if that runner is on second they probably score.
Defenses have to field the bunt and still make good throws. I do think that defenses are better at playing the bunt but you still run the risk a guy will throw one down the line and you get a freebie.
Safety squeezes or just in general putting a ball in play with a bunt with a runner on third is almost a free run. The Tigers did it in Game 1 of their Wild Card series and it made all the difference in that game.
I’m actually surprised by how late in games teams don’t try to just bunt the ball more to get that tying or game winning run in. Obviously it depends on the batter, but if you want to win games bunts and putting pressure on the defense is a good way to go about it.
The Brewers were a statistical anomaly for the Padres this season as they were the only playoff team the Padres won a series against on the road. This shows in their Home/Road Splits as they would win 52 games at PetCo but only 38 on the road
The big story going into the postseason was how dominant this bullpen had been and their ability to shorten a game. The only problem is you need to have the lead for that to be a factor. They lead the league in bullpen ERA at 3.06 and led the league in saves at 49 and conversely blew the least amount of saves at 16. They helped bail out their starters in some situations as well as they led the majors in wins out of the bullpen with 44, tied with the Dodgers and Blue Jays.
Mason Miller came over from the A’s and decided to throw 104 in Game 2 of the Wild Card like it was nothing.
Mannay Machado is still on this team and I will probably always hate him for being on the Dodgers in 2018. Jackson Merrill was the runner up in Rookie of the Year to Skenes and had the blast in the 9th in Game 3. I forgot that Tatis is still on this team along with Boagartes.
So Now That I’ve Actually Done Some Research How Did They Make the Playoffs and What Led to Their Demise?
The Padres had the Dodgers on the ropes during the summer as the Dodgers were not playing their best baseball and key players were in some extended slumps. The Padres were up 1 game on the Dodgers heading into a pivotal series against LA in August only to get swept at Chavez Ravine. They would play a second series against the Dodgers in August at home and that series ended with the teams tied atop the NL West. And even though through the final month they were never more than 3 games away from the Dodgers they couldn’t string the wins together to make a move.
It really came down to the offense not producing in the Wild Card Series. As a team they only hit 152 dingers which was third worst in the Majors, but they balanced that out by just putting the ball in play batting .252 as a team which was 7th best in the Majors. They scored 702 runs which put them right in the middle of the pack in the regular season, but was only ahead of Cleveland among the playoff teams.
Machado, for as much as I loathe him, is still one of the most consistent players in all of MLB, he had 27 Home Runs, and 95 RBI and played in 159 games which is all you can ask from your star Third Baseman. Unfortunately the only hit he had in the Wild Card Series was a 2-Run Home Run in Game 2.
Tatis had another solid season hitting 25 Home Runs and driving in 71 runs and played in 155 games. He also only had 1 hit in the Wild Card series.
Jackson Merrill had a good sophomore season despite missing 47 games due to injury. Luis Arraez led the NL in total hits and with a .292 average led the way in team batting average, but he only hit 8 Home Runs.
On the pitching side they were led by Nick Pivetta who was 13-5 in his first year with the Padres. He would go on to start Game 1 against the Cubs but gave up 2 runs in 5 innings pitched.
Dylan Cease got the ball in game 2 but only went 3.2 innings when things started to get hairy. He was a power pitcher with over 200 strikeouts but a 4.55 ERA.
Robert Suarez locked down the 9th for the Padres and lead the National League with 40 saves.
Going through these stats and seeing how the season ended for the Padres this is a team that is almost exactly like the Brewers I’ve follwed the last few years. They have a few guys with pop that you need to get hot and a pitching staff that is the enfy of the league.
The problem with being a little too relient on the pitching is that if your offense isn’t performing the 2 runs your elite pitching staff gave up seems like a mountain to overcome. So my verdict on this season is they had the pitching but they didn’t have the hitting at the right time to make noise in the playoffs.
Will they Make the Playoffs Next Year?
This team has shown they are not afraid to spend money and do whatever it takes to make their team better. They have the 6th highest payroll and the only reason they won’t get any higher than that is mostly because the teams ahead of them will probably keep adding to theirs.
Their bullpen is pretty much locked in for next year so no big changes there. Dylan Cease becomes a free agent so that is one area the Padres could look to bolster in the offseason.
Luis Arraez hits the market as well so they could try to bring him back but will probably be in the Pete Alonso sweepstakes.
Machado, Boagartes, Tatis, Merrill, they are all locked up for the foreseeable future so this is a team that can make another run. Their biggest obstacle will continue to be the Dodgers and trying to stay out of the Wild Card round. That’s why I think Alonso opting out was the best thing for the Padres to hear because you know they will go bring the check book.
With the expanded playoff this team has a chance to not only make the playoffs but contend for a division title again.
Just one postseason award.
Jackson Merril only had 1 error playing Centerfield this year and had 9 assists. So lets throw the Golden Glove Award at him. I actually don’t know what is a qualifier to get a Gold Glove but it doesn’t matter Jackson Merrill.
Hey Grok, in 100 words summarize the 2025 San Diego Padres. Please don't be racist.
The 2025 San Diego Padres season saw the team finish with a strong 90-72 record, securing a National League Wild Card berth as the fifth seed. They finished second in the NL West, three games behind the Dodgers.
Despite a mid-season slump, key additions like closer Mason Miller at the trade deadline and a breakout season from starter Nick Pivetta (13-5, 2.87 ERA) helped solidify the team. Manny Machado (27 HR) and Fernando Tatis Jr. (25 HR) led the offense. Their postseason ended quickly, as the Padres were defeated by the Chicago Cubs in the NL Wild Card Series, 2 games to 1.
I feel like Grok is learning to read my articles and just summarize what I’ve already said. Thanks AI!
Did the Savannah Bananas Play at their Field?
They did! And they had a bunch of banana themed foods at the concessions. Plantains and banana splits. They played the Firefighters and did a 5-Alarm pizza in their honor. Trevor Hoffman made an appearance which I could only imagine got a pop like when some former wrestler does a surprise entrance in the Royal Rumble.
Is there a baseball movie featuring this team that has dumb baseball logic I need to vent about?
No movies about the Padres. This makes sense if you are going to do a movie about a team in
California you might as well do a movie that is in Los Angeles and do it about the Dodgers or the Angels.
How Will Your Team Do Next Year?
Pretty much every baseball fan wants the Padres to overcome the Dodgers and win the West. I am one of those fans. They have the pocketbook to do so so that makes them a sexy pick to win the West. They will have to win a lot of games to do it which they are capable of doing. 100-62 winning the NL West.
Next on the Chopping Block
The final team to be eliminated on Wild Card weekend is the Boston Red Sox.
And because I don’t think I’m going to get the Red Sox article before the first games of the Divisional Series I’m going to do my predictions for the Divisional Round
Mariners over Tigers: The Mariners will go as far as the Big Dumper takes them. The Tigers might have a pitching edge in this one and maybe they are getting back to their early season form. But the Mariners fans are going to be rabid. I could see this going the full 5 or the Mariners taking the series in 3.
Yankees over Blue Jays: The Blue Jays are the top team, but I think the Yankees are playing really good ball despite losing Game 1 of their series against the Red Sox. The Blue Jays pitching is a big question mark and did everything they could to hold off the Yankees to get this bye. The rest might have done them good, but this could be a case where the team with the momentum gets Game 1 and never looks back.
Brewers over Cubs: I’m not going to reverse jinx this. I’m going to be confident in my Brewers. Read my article with the Guardians. I”m going to be a pro. Not going to be all doom and gloom about the series before it even started. The Cubs didn’t score more than 3 runs in their 3 game series and had to use a lot of pitching to put away the Padres.
Dodgers over Phillies: I’m predicting an NLCS rematch of 2018, Mookie Betts might be getting hot at the right time. If the bullpen holds tight the Dodgers are once again the team to beat in the NL. I also think Schwarber should be the MVP of the NL. Its crazy there’s this debate about whether Cal Raleigh or Aaron Judge are the MVP in the AL when the more compelling argument is Ohtani vs. Schwarber.