The San Diego Padres had a rollercoaster ride in the 2024 season that saw the NL West team make the postseason where they were beaten by the eventual World Series winners and NL rivals Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS.
Despite Juan Soto’s departure to the New York Yankees before the 2024 season, manager Mike Shildt saw the team improve from the 2023 season when they missed a postseason berth.
All-Star sluggers Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. were crucial in the team’s run through to the postseason and Shildt praised the duo’s characters in a recent episode of “Foul Territory.”
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When former World Series winning catcher A.J. Pierzynski asked Shildt to share an unheard story about the Padres duo, the Padres manager said (19:10):
“They are both really good-hearted dudes. We played actually in St. Louis and got walked off. No one had a ground ball in the middle. Get walked off and a good friend of mine and her kid, her son and a buddy of his at the game. Both kids had baseballs and Manny Machado, he’s walking. From the dugout, they’re like, ‘Hey, Manny Manny Manny here. Oh, you’re my dude, can you sign a ball?’
“He doesn’t know these people from Adam, he didn’t know their close friends of mine. He goes over and signs a ball. And you know, these kids, they’re eight years old and nine years old and they go home and they’re sleeping with the ball for like a month. I just get the privilege of seeing how these guys handled themselves, handled their business, but really, really good with kids and really care about giving back, help the game in that regard.”
Both Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. are fan favorites in San Diego and are under contract for several years. The Padres will hope the two stalwarts could help the team topple the Dodgers’ dominance next season.
Mike Shildt signs two-year extension after resurgent star with Padres in 2024
Mike Shildt’s appointment as Padres manager before the 2024 season following Bob Melvin’s departure paid dividends for the NL West team. The Padres looked invigorated under Shildt and his leadership earned him an NL Manager of the Year nomination.
However, he lost to Milwaukee Brewers‘ Pat Murphy in the voting. His 93-69 season in his first year in charge of the team also earned him a two-year contract extension from the team in November.
The ongoing offseason is going to be a crucial factor in the Padres’ aspirations of toppling the Dodgers as the World Series winners have already landed a major signing by roping in two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell last week.
Edited by Chaitanya Prakash
