Padres News: Friars Remain Below-Average in New Power Rankings, Experts Not Sold Yet
We have to remain realistic and optimistic here folks. The San Diego Padres were given a very nice grace period the first month of the season where they could barely produce any offense and had to deal with some pitching struggles as well. Many experts believed that they would come around eventually but May saw them continue to slump for some weeks.
Therefore, now that they have taken home three straight series and will now face off against a talented San Fransisco Giants team, the same experts are approaching their updated reviews of the clubhouse with caution. And I can definitely see why.
Fernando Tatis Jr. has seemingly returned to the same superstar status that he was in back in 2021 before all of the injuries and off-field drama. He is currently batting .400 in the month of June with five homers and is leading all right-fielders in a number of major defensive stats. So Tatis has continued his excellence at the plate while dominating a position he's only played full-time for two months now.
However, the Friars still have a number of problems on their hands that are keeping them from being mentioned in the top teams conversations. Austin Nola has made some slight progress recently in terms of production but still remains inferior to what he was in 2022, SD's pitching staff is incomplete without Seth Lugo and it's going to be tough for the Padres to make any significant trade moves before the deadline.
With all of that being said, experts from The Athletic were impressed with San Diego being able to beat the Tampa Bay Rays and continue their hot streak but kept them at number 18 in the new power rankings.
"Let’s sleepwalk in Slam Diego. The Padres entered Sunday with the sport’s highest walk rate and a star-studded lineup still in search of its first grand slam. Still, the team did win a homestand at Petco Park for the first time all season. Fernando Tatis Jr. led the charge while continuing to cement himself as baseball’s best defensive right fielder, including a seed of a throw on Sunday to cut down the potential game-tying run. Defense and pitching haven’t been problems all season. What is? An offense constructed to crush is instead just coaxing walks."
(Via The Athletic)
Longevity and production all throughout their batting lineup will be the Padres' key to success moving forward. Hopefully they can at least make some upgrades at the DH position when the deadline rolls around!
