Padres: Manny Machado Praises Xander Bogaerts, He's An 'MVP Type Player'
The Padres had an active offseason, being heavily in on Trea Turner and Aaron Judge before ultimately signing Xander Bogaerts to an 11-year, $280 million contract to pry him away from the Red Sox. Bogaerts had played the first 10 years of his career in Boston.
This weekend, San Diego third baseman Manny Machado was asked about the addition of Bogaerts, and he had high praise for the slugging shortstop.
"He's a hell of a player, an MVP-type caliber player, and to put him in the lineup that we have, he's gonna bring that energy. He's won, he's a champion, so he knows what it takes to get there and to win it all, so he's definitely gonna help us get to where we want to be and do special things for us this year."
Bogaerts is a four-time All-Star and has received MVP votes in each of the last five seasons, finishing as high as fifth in 2019. Over those five seasons, Xander has batted. 301 with a 133 OPS+, making him the best hitter of the four big-name shortstops on this winter's market. He also had the best defensive season of his career in 2022, making him an all-around talent that San Diego couldn't pass up on.
Machado had a firsthand look at Bogaerts being a champion, as he was the Dodgers' shortstop in 2018 when Bogaerts' Red Sox downed LA to win the World Series. Neither star played his best in that series — Machado posted a .390 OPS, and Bogaerts was at .422 — but they also played against each other in the American League East for years when Xander was with Boston and Manny was with Baltimore.
Now the two will share the left side of the San Diego infield, and it should be fun to watch.