SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – Less than 24 hours after the Padres ended the 2023 season without a spot in the postseason, chairman Peter Seidler said the organization “will make the changes necessary” to put a World Series contending team on the field in 2024.
Seidler addressed the 2023 season and shared his thoughts on next season in a statement released Monday morning:
“We entered 2023 with expectations that we would build on last year’s NLCS appearance and contend for a World Series Championship. We fell short of that goal. The Padres organization will learn from this season and merge in 2024 with the pieces in place to compete for San Diego’s first World Series title. Our current leadership team continues to have my full support, and I have asked them to perform a thorough assessment of our organization, beginning today. We will make the changes necessary to play championship-caliber baseball for our extraordinary fans in 2024.”
The Padres entered the 2023 season coming off the high of a strong playoff run in ’22 and excitement surrounding key offseason acquisitions, highlighted by the blockbuster signing of star shortstop Xander Bogaerts.
However, the team started the season slowly and underachieved through most of the year. Injuries to pitchers Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish hit the starting rotation hard, while primary first baseman Jake Cronenworth was lost for the season in August with a fractured wrist after being hit by a pitch.
With the Los Angeles Dodgers grabbing hold of the NL West late in the summer, the Friars had to focus on the NL Wild Card to get into the postseason, but they were unable to string together enough wins to keep them within realistic striking distance.
In a case of “too little, too late,” the Padres finally put together winning streaks that carried them to the best record in baseball in September and put them in a position to somehow sneak into the playoffs.
While San Diego was ultimately eliminated from postseason contention in game 160, the team ended the 2023 campaign on high note with a five-game winning streak and optimism for a better 2024.
The 2023 Padres season did have some bright spots:
- Pitcher Blake Snell put together a Cy Young-worthy season, finishing with an MLB-best 2.29 ERA and a career-high 234 strikeouts
- Fernando Tatis Jr., after missing all of 2022, returned to give the lineup a jolt and played a new position (right field) at a Gold Glove level
- Ha-seong Kim had his best season yet, playing Gold Glove-caliber defense at second base and establishing himself as a solid big league hitter
- Catcher Gary Sanchez, picked up on waivers in May, helped solidify the catching position and added power to the lineup
But the organization enters the offseason with many questions, including:
- Will the disappointing 2023 campaign lead to the dismissal of manager Bob Melvin and/or general manager A.J. Preller?
- Slugger Juan Soto could enter free agency after '24, and if no extension agreement is reached before next season, will that mean a trade?
- With talk of a payroll reduction, can the team afford to bring back Snell, Sanchez, and pitchers Josh Hader, Seth Lugo, Nick Martinez, and Michael Wacha?
