Was It Worth It?
Denis Poroy | Getty Images
The San Diego Padres have been eliminated from the 2022 MLB Postseason following a 4-3 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLCS.
The Padres went all in at the trade deadline only to come up a round short of the World Series. While the team was too far behind to catch the Dodgers for the division title, they were able to defeat them in four games in the NLDS. The Padres made arguably the biggest trade of the decade by acquiring star outfielder Juan Soto from the Washington Nationals. The Padres were also able to acquire Josh Bell in that package and were able to get closing pitcher Josh Hader from the Brewers a week earlier.
But despite adding all the star power to their already stacked lineup, they failed to reach their ultimate goal again. It seemed as if they could make a run at the Commissioner’s Trophy, and everyone thought they would, but there was a better team waiting for them in Final Four.
It took a while for Juan Soto to get going this postseason. He was relatively quiet in the Wild Card round against the Mets but came through in Game three when his team needed him the most. He produced a little more in the Division Series against the Dodgers, scoring three runs of his own but only had one RBI.
Soto finished the postseason with a .239 batting average, which (so far) is tied for 37th among active players this postseason. He scored seven runs, and drove in seven runs, but struck out ten times.
Josh Hader made five appearances this postseason and pitched 5.1 innings. He recorded four saves and pitched well after having a slow start to his Padres’ career. I’m sure the Padres would’ve liked to use him more for saves, but the opportunities didn’t present themselves considering the fact that they never had the series lead in NLCS.
Despite the disappointment, it brings us back to the question, was it worth it? The answer I think is yes. The Padres still have a really good team on paper and in game situations. They had to win two games on the road to begin the postseason, they upset the best team in the league, and acquired a generational talent at the trade deadline. Not to mention they’ll be getting back Fernando Tatis Jr. as they head into the summer. I think it’s safe to say the Padres will be looking for revenge next season, which will make them dangerous.
