Padres Notes: Friars Hit Jackpot, Manny Machado and Manager Disagree, Walker Buehler Not Satisfied

The 2026 Major League Baseball season officially begins Wednesday night as the San Francisco Giants host the New York Yankees live on Netflix. As for the San Diego Padres and the other 27 teams, they will have to wait a tad longer for Opening Day on Thursday, March 26 (while some will have to wait until Friday).

With the new season so close to starting, the Padres are able to assess some of their under-the-radar moves as major successes after a strong spring brought them to the Opening Day roster. President of baseball operations A.J. Preller is no stranger to finding the diamond in the rough, but the hope is that his new pieces will continue to shine through the regular season.

In other news, superstar Manny Machado seemed to disagree with manager Craig Stammen about the amount of rest that he needs. The skipper spoke on his reasoning for asserting thatMachadoe should take more time off to get a full season of elite production, rather than just the start.

“Yeah, he’s good at portraying the tough man,” Stammen said in response to Machado's dismissive comment on the idea of resting more. “That’s who he is. It’s a badge of honor for him. But we’ve also got to get the best out of him for a full season, not just in April and May."

“He’s no spring chicken anymore,” Stammen added. “And we want the best for him. He wants the best for himself, wants the best for the team. We can make good decisions that way, with that in mind.”

Last season, Machado batted .292 with an OPS of .841 in 96 appearances in the first half of the season, compared to a .250 batting average and an OPS of .726 in the 63 second-half games he played.

Finally, Walker Buehler, one of the Friars who started the offseason on a minor league deal and has since made the Opening Day roster, spoke on not being satisfied with his promotion. Stammen spoke on his veteran hurler sharing the winning mindset of the Padres and trusting the process, which appears to have paid off for both sides.

"Him buying into that so quickly and seeing success with it over the last couple starts made us feel really comfortable putting him on the team," Stammen said.

Here’s all the latest Padres news and stories (click the headline for the full article):

Padres Hit Jackpot With Under-The-Radar Offseason Additions

Manny Machado, Padres Manager Seem to Disagree About Star Needing Rest

Walker Buehler Not Satisfied After Making Padres' Opening Day Roster

One Trade the Padres Could Still Make Before Opening Day

3 Padres Players Who Need Solid Starts to Retain Roster Spots

Padres Should Sign Former Dodgers Star to Solidify Key Position Ahead of Opening Day

Padres Opening Day Predicted Starting Lineup Against Tarik Skubal, Tigers

Padres' Mason Miller Predicted to Finish Behind Dodgers Closer in Key Stat

Padres Tweets of the Day

The #Padres have some new food options at Petco Park. I’ll have to try them all at some point this season.

These are the four that I must try on Opening Day Weekend.

Photos courtesy of @SammyLev. pic.twitter.com/BIzKeaaOMc
— SleeperPadres (@SleeperPadres) March 24, 2026

The wait is almost over. pic.twitter.com/6JtN3rGU5b
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) March 25, 2026

After leading the MLB with a 3.06 ERA last season, the Friars’ bullpen looks ready to shorten games all over again. 🔥

Here’s the projected bullpen, per @fangraphs. pic.twitter.com/ReGbpJIimY
— SleeperPadres (@SleeperPadres) March 24, 2026

FUN FACT:

Romeo Sanabria was the first player to hit a home run for the Padres in Spring Training on February 20. He was also one of the last, hitting a grand slam in the final Spring Training game.

.333 AVG | 1.218 OPS | 3 HR | 15 RBI pic.twitter.com/Dls6VfoDFH
— SleeperPadres (@SleeperPadres) March 24, 2026