SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Padres have followed a clear overall trajectory since the historic fervor of their 2022-23 offseason. An 82-win campaign preceded the departure of another manager, the death of owner Peter Seidler and the trade of Juan Soto. In April, the Padres won consecutive series against a trio of likely playoff contenders. Barely a week later, they embarked on a five-game losing streak that prompted memories of 2023.
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“You got to stay with the process, trust the process, continue getting better every single day,” third baseman Manny Machado said Tuesday afternoon. “I think if we continue doing that in the long haul, over a long period of time things will kind of even out.”
Machado added: “But yeah, it’s not a good homestand for sure.”
The Padres salvaged something from that homestand, ending their skid with Tuesday night’s victory against the Cincinnati Reds before getting a Jake Cronenworth grand slam and an encouraging Joe Musgrove start in Wednesday’s series-deciding win. At 16-18, San Diego still needs a sustained stretch of success to prove things really are looking up.
We’ve touched on a few of the team’s individual slides in this space. As the Padres enter May, let’s examine the recent trajectories of four other players, starting with the good.
Stock up
Jurickson Profar
Where would the Padres be without Profar? Knowing he might not serve as more than a part-time player, the 31-year-old returned to San Diego in February on a $1 million deal. He has since started every game; led the offense in batting average (.342), on-base percentage (.431), slugging percentage (.523) and FanGraphs wins above replacement (1.4); and supplanted $280 million second baseman Xander Bogaerts as the team’s leadoff man. In Wednesday’s 6-2 win, Profar reeled off four singles to extend his current hitting streak to eight games.
“He’s been our best hitter so far this year,” Fernando Tatis Jr., the $340 million right fielder who is in a 6-for-46 slump, said recently.
Profar said his approach has not changed batting atop the lineup. “Just look for a good pitch to hit hard somewhere,” the left fielder said. What has changed this year is that, on average, he is hitting the ball harder than ever. An offseason of ample preparation has helped. Unlike in early 2023 — Profar did not sign with the Colorado Rockies until late March — the veteran received plenty of live repetitions while playing winter ball for Tatis’ father and then after joining the Padres in spring training.
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Profar might eventually settle back into being more of a role player than a club-pacing catalyst. But his current peripheral numbers indicate he should continue to be highly relevant to the Padres’ fate this summer and beyond.
Adrian Morejon
Between July 2016 and June 2017, the Padres went on a 47-player spending spree. That $80 million investment in international prospects yielded a handful of valuable trade pieces but has basically amounted to an expensive bust. All these years later, none of the 47 players is an established big leaguer.
Still, there is renewed hope for the biggest signing in the class. Morejon, who cost the Padres $22 million between his bonus and overage taxes, is displaying career-high velocity and a new sweeper in his role as a multi-inning reliever. The 25-year-old remains susceptible to right-handed hitting (righties are 13-for-24 against him), but after various injures hampered him throughout his first five big-league seasons — and after biomechanical assessments in San Diego’s pitching lab — Morejon has found early success (2.61 ERA) and comfort with a lower arm slot recommended by pitching coach Ruben Niebla.
“That last month of the (2023) season when I had injuries, I think that’s when Ruben first noticed some of the things that we’ve been working on, and this offseason we really started to put the work in,” Morejon said through team interpreter Danny Sanchez.
“Now that I feel good physically, it’s really been an easy adjustment with the new arm slot.”
Since being recalled from Triple-A El Paso on April 12, Morejon has thrown more innings (10 1/3) than he gave the Padres all of last season (nine). He has struck out 16 of 45 batters and walked no one. He still has not truly established himself — Morejon’s career high in major-league innings is 34 — but he has been one of San Diego’s more useful relievers.
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Stock down
Michael King
King has surrendered more home runs than anyone in the majors other than Musgrove, who also has given up 10 home runs. King’s 13 percent walk rate is the highest among qualifying pitchers. And a lack of command has been exacerbated by a fastball that has not exactly come as advertised.
Four of the home runs off King have come against his four-seamer. Five have come against his sinker. His average fastball velocity, at 92.8 mph, is down 1.5 mph from last season. (King averaged 94.3 mph in 2023. His average in September, after he moved into the New York Yankees’ rotation, also was 94.3 mph.)
Maybe King simply needs more time to regain a tick or two on his primary pitch.
Michael King has not shown decreased zip on his fastball early this season. (Darren Yamash*ta / USA TODAY Sports)
“We’ve talked about it,” King said last week. “If you look at my April average, I think it’s just like I’m almost one of those slower starters. Even as a reliever in April last year, my velo was down. So it’s just kind of, I catch my groove and get it going through the middle of the season and finish strong. But I remember being concerned about it last year when I was coming out of the bullpen throwing, like, 92, and I was like, ‘What’s going on here?’ But my average, I think, was, like, 92.5 in ’22. My average in April of last year was, like, 92.7. So, I think it’s just kind of build throughout the year.”
King’s fastball velocity was up noticeably in the first inning of his start Sunday, but the Philadelphia Phillies still made hard contact and the right-hander did not sustain the uptick; he finished a six-run, three-homer clunker with an average fastball velocity of 93.2 mph. The main piece in the return for Soto, King also showed more than a few flashes of brilliance during his first month in San Diego’s rotation, but the Padres must hope his fastball metrics indeed improve.
Ha-Seong Kim
After an erratic start to the season, Kim’s defense has stabilized. The Gold Glove Award winner continues to be a plus base runner. His aggregate contributions and his return to shortstop have him on pace for another four-plus-WAR season. Kim also is hitting .218, slugging .387 and residing near the bottom of a lineup that lacks depth and consistent power.
Kim’s underlying stats last season indicated that he was a bit lucky to hit .260. No one questions his work ethic, ancillary skills or clubhouse intangibles. But on a team with three other shortstops, the Padres are fortunate that rookie Jackson Merrill has adjusted to center field so well. Time will tell whether the team should have more seriously considered trading Kim in the offseason. In the meantime, San Diego’s need for more offense remains clear.
(Top photo of Profar: Sean M. Haffey / Getty Images)
Dennis Lin is a senior writer for The Athletic covering the San Diego Padres. He previously covered the Padres for the San Diego Union-Tribune. He is a graduate of USC. Follow Dennis on Twitter @dennistlin
