Padres News: Veteran MLB Pitcher Predicts Friars Win 104 Games Next Season

Things can change pretty quickly in the sports world...

2023 has been a nightmare season for the San Diego Padres. The year started with so much hope that this would be the season they would truly contend for their first-ever World Series title, but so far, things haven’t gone their way.

The team has been scratching and clawing their way back toward contention the entire season. It has caused frustration in the locker room, and it has shown on the field. But this team won’t give up until they are mathematically eliminated. It’s not who they are as a ballclub, and that speaks to the leaders on the team.

While the Padres likely won’t make the postseason this year, they can take the mistakes of this season and learn from them. The pressure got to them, but now they know what to expect.

Next year could yield better results, and this team looks scary on paper. Of course, we won’t actually know who will be on the roster for San Diego next season, but that hasn’t stopped one player from making a bold claim about them.

Adam Wainwright of the St. Louis Cardinals recently gave his thoughts on the Padres and says they will be a top team next season.

“That’s a tough team,” the Cardinals pitcher, a veteran of 18 MLB seasons, said. “They’re going to win 104 games next year, you watch. That’s a really, really talented team.”

Per The SD Union-Tribune

It’s not out of the realm of possibility that the Friars will live up to their talent next season. Naturally, they won’t have as much pressure on them to succeed, and that is when they can strike.

Having a target on your back can change things for teams, and the Padres learned that all too well this year. There is still a month left to go in the season, but unless San Diego gets things going for the first time all season, they will be left on the outside looking in.