Padres News: Nick Martinez Dumbfounded by ‘Bizarre’ Season

The Padres were officially eliminated from playoff contention Friday night.

After a rocky season, to say the least, the Padres will officially be watching the MLB postseason on their couches like the rest of us.

Despite sporting the third-highest payroll on Opening Day, the Padres failed to get hot or perform in late games. The Padres didn't win a game in extra innings until this week, losing their first 11.

But, because they will be returning some of their talented hitters, there is, as they say, always next year. Fans will speculate about locker room toxicity or a lack of trying from the Padres' bats, but we will never truly know why San Diego failed to live up to expectations.

“I wouldn’t bet that this happens twice in a row to a team like this, right?” Martinez said Sunday. “To fall short this, to have some inexplicable things happen … no one’s really having an individually bad year. It’s very bizarre not to win one extra-inning game (they would a few days later)."

Some years are just a wash, but 162 games is probably a large enough sample size to measure this Padres team. And they did not pass the test. 

There were issues hitting with runners in scoring position. There were rumors swirling that painted an ugly pitcher of a disjointed locker room that got worse with each loss.

Much of the Padres' core will return next season, including Martinez. It remains to be seen if the same problems will return as well.