The Padres and their impressive batting lineup were projected as a wild-card playoff team after finishing third in the NL West in 2021. But San Diego notched ten more wins than the previous season and finished second in the division with an 89-73 card.
Third baseman Manny Machado led the team with 36 homers and 102 RBIs, while right-hander Yu Darvish compiled a 16-8 record and a team-high 197 strikeouts. The Padres topped the Mets and Dodgers in the postseason before losing to the Phillies in their first NLCS appearance since 1998.
The star-studded Padres will open the 2023 campaign as NL West favorites and a legitimate World Series contender.
The San Diego Padres are a National League (NL) West division team based San Diego, California. Founded in 1969 as an expansion franchise, they were originally part of the National League's West Division and have remained there since.
The Padres have never won a World Series, but they have won two NL pennants (1984 and 1998) and five NL West Division titles. Some of their most iconic moments include having one of the greatest comebacks in baseball history to win game 4 of the 1998 NLCS, and being awarded five Gold Glove Awards in 2010.
They play their home games at Petco Park, located in downtown San Diego.
The biggest rivals of the San Diego Padres have historically been the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants. The rivalry with the Dodgers has become especially intense over the years due to their close proximity. In recent years the Padres have had more success against both teams than in past decades.
Some of the most iconic players in San Diego Padres history include Tony Gwynn, Trevor Hoffman, Dave Winfield, Ken Caminiti, Adrian Gonzalez, and Ozzie Smith. All of these players are members of the Padres Hall of Fame and have shaped the team's history through their impressive performances on the field. In 1998, Tony Gwynn achieved a batting average of .372 which is still an MLB record today. Trevor Hoffman became baseball’s all-time saves leader while playing for the Padres from 1993 to 2008 and was inducted into Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 2018.
