Padres News: One Friar Lands on the Top 10 List of Upcoming 2023-24 Free Agents

One of the best closers in the game.

Buckle up Padres fans, we've all gotten very accustomed to Peter Seidler and the rest of the San Diego front office being very generous when it comes to emptying their pockets and spending on their roster. Their franchise has not always been the best at compiling talent together but that has all changed over the last couple of seasons.

Even though they haven't quite lived up to all of the noise that was surrounding them during the offseason and the peak of Spring Training, most of that is due to a huge lack of offensive production from their biggest stars. Juan Soto will be hitting one year of service with the Friars this season and nobody really expected him to be slashing .246/.406/.454 through the first 37 games of the season.

Nelson Cruz, Juan Soto y Fernando Tatis Jr posando para la foto 🇲🇽😂pic.twitter.com/AFjort6mp1

— Joframaso (@joframaso) May 11, 2023

However, Padres fans do still have some things to smile about. Xander Bogaerts has proven to be an excellent pickup and their most consistent batter thus far, Fernando Tatis Jr. is growing more comfortable every plate appearance and outfield snag, and Josh Hader has continued to be elite when he steps up to the mound.

Hader is the prime example of what it means to step in at the end of games and take care of business. He was named the first NL Closer of the month for the 2023 season and through 17 games, he is posting an elite 1.07 ERA with a 0.765 WHIP.

For all of these reasons, Hader has been slated as one of the top-ten free agents heading into next offseason.

"Outside of a rough patch during the second half last season prior to a dominant run in the playoffs, Josh Hader has been one of the most overpowering relief pitchers the game has ever seen."

"The left-hander has been excellent so far this season, nailing down 11 of 12 save opportunities with a 1.13 ERA, 0.69 WHIP and 11.3 K/9 in 16 games. As long as he doesn't encounter another rocky patch, Hader has a real shot at exceeding the record-setting five-year, $102 million deal that Edwin Díaz inked this past offseason."

(Via Bleacher Report)

We are very confident that the Friars will be able to retain him!