Padres News: MLB Insider Believes Friars Are Sacrificing Future For A Championship

Jim Bowden believes San Diego will feel the effects of spending so much but says it is worth it if they make it to the promised land.

The San Diego Padres have been bringing out the brinks trucks over the past few seasons, loading up their roster with some of the best players in baseball and compensating them generously in the process. 

It all started when they locked in Fernando Tatis Jr. on a monster 14-year deal worth $340 million back in 2021. He was coming off a historic season, and his return this year is the X-factor in determining the Friar's success. The Padres then offered over $300 million to Trea Turner but struck out and instead welcomed in star shortstop Xander Bogaerts on an 11-year, $280 million contract. Finally, all that was left was Manny Machado, and after an intense negation period, he agreed to a $350 million extension that will keep in San Diego until he retires.

All of this money has been handed out to the best players rocking brown and gold, and Juan Soto is still left if the Padres opt to keep him. There have also been reports that Machado structured the first years of his contract carefully so the team could pursue more talent (Hello, Shohei Ohtani) on top of their humongous payroll.

Former GM and current MLB analyst Jim Bowden joined 'The Darren Smith Show' and had an interesting opinion on the route that San Diego's front office has taken in the past couple of months.

"This won’t end well but it’s ok because it’s not about how it ends, it’s about winning a championship” @JimBowdenGM talked #Padres contracts with @DSmithShow , what it would take to extend Juan Soto and why Preller needs to add more starting pitchinghttps://t.co/3oiBDHl1Zi pic.twitter.com/x5OBWkjPlF

— Marty Caswell (@MartyCaswell) March 2, 2023

"This won’t end well," said Bowden. "But it’s ok because it’s not about how it ends, it’s about winning a championship.”

Bowden is a former Executive of the Year and is very experienced when it comes to seeing the downfall of roster construction. However, he does respect that San Diego sees a window to add so much talent at once and is jumping on it right away.

The San Diego Padres have never won a World Series, so that does beg the question: Would fans be willing to go through some mediocre seasons in about 8-10 years if it means that the Friars will be serious contenders for the foreseeable future? I believe a majority would say yes.