We don't talk (enough) about Manny Machado
Why has Manny Machado's stint with the San Diego Padres gone under the radar?
I feel like, despite signing the largest free agent contract in the history of the San Diego Padres, we don’t talk enough about Manny Machado. There’s some reasons for that, for most of them are in the past. Let’s go through them so that we can get past them.
Year 1 (2019)
Manny Machado signed with the Padres before the 2019 season. He was coming off maybe the best year of his career (split between the Orioles and Dodgers), and expectations were high.
The 2018 Padres were terrible, even after signing Eric Hosmer to a the largest free agent contract in team history (at the time) to join the squad. We knew it would take more than Machado to turn this ship around.
In Peoria that year, the chatter around spring training wasn’t about Machado and his new 10yr/$300M contract. It was about the kids. Specifically, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Chris Paddack. They were flying through the minors and performed well enough in the spring to get a chance in the majors. Their success meant a potential addition of three good players to the team, instead of just one, and Machado was already overshadowed.
We spent much of that season talking about the rookies, or Andy Green’s managing, or Eric Hosmer underperforming his contract. If we did talk about Manny, it was about the down year he was having in his first season with the Padres. He finished 2nd on the team in fWAR, trailing Tatis, and nobody else was close to them.
Year 2 (2020)
This was to be Machado’s redemption. He was public about being disappointed in his 2019 season and he was going to come back as the guy they paid the big bucks to lead the team.
And, in a way, he did that. Manny posted the highest OPS+ of his career, finished 3rd in NL MVP voting, and lead the Padres to their first playoff series victory in 20+ years. It was a triumph. But it was also in a pandemic-shortened season in front of empty stadiums.
He also, once again, finished 2nd on the team in fWAR, trailing Tatis. And this time there was someone close to them, a new young gold-glove winning CF named Trent Grisham.
I’m not implying that Machado was upset by being overshadowed. He definitely prefers to be on a talented team that can compete for a title, and he doesn’t seem to mind when the kids play at his level. That being said, he went from being the savior of the franchise to “a really good third baseman” quickly, and all of the talk of statues went to Tatis instead.
Year 3 (2021)
Shortly before the 2021 season got underway, Fernando Tatis Jr. signed a 14-year contract with the Padres. Everyone, collectively, freaked out in the same way we had when the Machado signing was originally announced. And one memory washed over the other.
The contract was literally called “a statue contract” by people involved in the negotiation of it, and the myth-making began. It was assumed that, 15 years from now, there would be Tony Gwynn, Trevor Hoffman, and Fernando Tatis Jr. in the annals of Padres history.
But…what about Manny? Machado’s 2020 season will be remembered for two things.
One, hitting less than 30 HRs in a full season for the first time since his rookie year with the Orioles. We found out, when he was mic’d up during batting practice, that a shoulder injury he was playing through was hurting his “pop”.
Two, the time Manny loudly called out Tatis in the dugout. You remember. It looked like this:
And it created enough havoc that the guys had to later address the media together to try and put it behind them.
Add that to the fact that Machado finished 3rd on the team in fWAR behind Tatis (again) and Jake Cronenworth, and it really felt like Machado’s prime was being squandered and forgotten.
Year 4 (2022)
Here we are. The Padres are without their superstar shortstop for a while, the result of his offseason recklessness. Trent Grisham is off to a slow start and coming off a down year. Jake Cronenworth’s .211 average with zero HRs isn’t much better.
If the team is going to compete for a World Series, they are going to need someone else to carry them for those months when Tatis can’t play. And so, after years of being overshadowed, the Padres and their fans turn their eyes back to the guy they thought would be the face of the franchise until Tatis walked through that door…
Two weeks in, Manny is leading the team in fWAR by a mile. His defense remains brilliant, he’s locked in offensively, and he is the captain of this team.
When the Padres gave up an early 1-0 lead to the Reds last night, it felt like that could be a problem. The San Diego offense has struggled to score with any consistency. What if they couldn’t score at all?
Then, in his first at bat, Manny sent a screamer into the left field stands and gave the Padres a lead they would never give up. He was there when he was needed.
Manny Machado is the best free agent the Padres have ever signed. However, hilariously, he may never be the best player on the team except for when Tatis is out. But he’s never complained, never stopped working hard, and he’s always there when we need him.
The Padres need him now, and he’s delivering. He’s only topped his current 142 OPS+ twice, once in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and once in the 2018 season before he hit free agency. If he can find a way to keep it up, he’ll get MVP votes and we’ll spend a lot more time talking about him.
I don’t like hearing that his shoulder, which gave him trouble last season, was wrapped in ice after last night’s game. But I supposed I shouldn’t be surprised after seeing him throw the team on his back.