Padres Superstar Reveals Reasons Behind Team's Initial 2023 Struggles

A lot of adjustments hit them at once early on.
Padres Superstar Reveals Reasons Behind Team's Initial 2023 Struggles
Padres Superstar Reveals Reasons Behind Team's Initial 2023 Struggles /
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With the San Diego Padres about to enter one of the most hyped series of the 2023 season yet against the Los Angeles Dodgers, a lot of talk is surrounding how the two teams haven't had electric starts like years past.

Particularly in the Friars' case, this has been clear because of the lack of offense they've shown. Hundred of millions of dollars were not spent on new additions and extensions just to not get any consistent hits.

Out of their 15 losses this year, they did not record a single run and for a couple of weeks, they were sitting among the worst teams in most major hitting stats. Juan Soto and Manny Machado took unsuccessful after unsuccessful trip to the plate and fans were growing impatient.

However, Machado has seen it all and he stayed calm during that initial rough period. Even though it took a trip to Mexico City and the team welcoming back some key pieces, San Diego is slowly making their way back up the charts and have won four out of their last five games right before the Dodgers series.

Part of being the team's leader is reflection and Machado did just that as he explained what was wrong with the Friars in April.

“I mean, just having the team together — that’s the key,” Machado said. “We’ve had injuries, guys coming back from different things, guys who weren’t all together in spring training. Finally we have some games under our belt with our full squad. We’re still missing a few guys (in the bullpen) … but this is the team that we’re rolling with, that we were waiting for.”

(Via The San Diego-Union Tribune)

And the 30-year-old infielder is making his way back to the MVP-level that we saw him playing at last season. He's seen successful trips at the plate in seven of their last nine outings and has continued stellar defense.

There is no better time for everything within the Padres to click than this weekend against LA as Fernando Tatis Jr. and Juan Soto also find their strides.


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Noel Sanchez
NOEL SANCHEZ

Noel is currently in his third year at California Polytechnic University of Pomona and is pursuing a B.A. in Communications with an emphasis in Multi-Media Journalism. He has always had a deep passion for sports and writing.