SF Giants have to feel a bit better about dreadful season thanks to the Padres

There probably isn’t much that will console SF Giants fans after this disaster of a season, but one thing that may make everyone feel a little bit better is just how bad the San Diego Padres have been.

San Diego got off to a strong start early in the season and it seemed like they might legitimately challenge the Los Angeles Dodgers for the National League West crown. That hope turned out to be short-lived as the Padres are now 44-46 on the season and are 1-9 in their last ten games.

They now find themselves in third place in the division behind the Arizona Diamondbacks who are at 45-45. In a weird way the Giants are still technically alive if they want to get second place in the division. If only they hadn’t been so thoroughly dominated by Arizona this season it would actually be a more competitive race.

But San Diego’s slide is a bit surprising. On paper it seems like they have a lineup that should make them a tough team to play but that hasn’t been the case. If you think Rafael Devers, Willy Adames, and Matt Chapman have been bad, San Diego’s stars make those three look like All-Star players.

Manny Machado has been awful out of nowhere as he’s hitting .190/.282/.408 with 18 home runs and 51 runs batted in. He was an All-Star last year and has been a reliable producer for San Diego for years.

Fernando Tatis Jr. hasn’t been his usual self either. He’s hitting a respectable .282/.343/.382 with five home runs and 34 runs batted in but the disappearance of his power has truly been puzzling. 

Other key players like Jackson Merrill and Xander Bogaerts have also had down years so the team’s offense has really just cratered out of nowhere.

Padres' struggles under rookie manager make Vitello look a bit better

They’ve also had to deal with a lot of injuries on the pitching side which hasn’t helped things at all. They’re missing key rotation arms like Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove. Plus, they lost Dylan Cease in free agency and the rest of the staff is feeling it.

San Diego’s rough season at least makes the Giants look a little less bad. The Padres rolled the dice on a rookie manager of their own in Craig Stammen and he hasn’t fared all that well so Tony Vitello is now the only new manager in the NL West who is having a rough debut season.

It’s frustrating because for years now the Giants have wanted to be the team to leapfrog San Diego and become the second-best team in the NL West. This year may have been their chance but their lack of investment in the pitching staff has likely squandered that opportunity. 

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