Three Keys For The San Diego Padres To Make It To The World Series
If you take a moment and check out any World Series betting platform around, you’ll notice how the Padres are right up there as one of the hottest and best options to win the 2021 MLB World Series title. Be it because of Fernando Tatis Jr., one of baseball’s most dangerous hitters, their defensive groove, or their pitching, San Diego has it absolutely all to not just make it to the World Series but win it as well. They would have to fend off teams like the Dodgers, Giants, Brewers, Cubs and Mets in the NL just to make it there, but they can do it and they can do it in style.
With that said, talking about making it to the world championship series is one thing, actually getting there is a whole other. So what are the keys the Padres need to focus on if they want to go for it all in late October?
Playing Smart, Injury Preventing Baseball Is a Must
The San Diego Padres are one of the hottest tickets in baseball right now. Everyone wants to watch them play live now that fans are back in the stadiums or by tv or internet. While all that is great for the fans, it’s the team that needs to hold back a bit in order to make it to October in full health and strength.
The Padres have already played one of the toughest schedules in the MLB. They basically have no idea what taking a break means. Has that stopped San Diego from dominating? No, but what it does is make the Padres understand that nobody is completely essential at all times. While there will be time for days off, right now what the Padres offer if not having all of their prime time players play every single game. Why? Simple, baseball has a 162 game season, if a player nowadays plays all 162 games, plus postseason, chances of injuries blow through the roof and it doesn’t take a genius to understand that you don’t want your key players out with injuries when it’s playoff time.
Players like Manny Machado, a known work horse for the Padres, have sat out a few games to rest up. Fernando Tatis Jr. also has sat out, especially with him already missing around 17 games during two stints in the IL. Eric Hosmer and Jake Cronenworth have enjoyed days off, too. This not only helps the starters rest but it also gives other positional players the chance to get their work in and always be in game ready mentalities. Given their schedule San Diego needs to continue this, but given the fact that they have adopted this system and has worked so well for them, this only makes the Padres an even stronger team down the line.
It’s All About The “Swagg Chain”
If anybody ever wanted to find a reason for why San Diego is so dominating when it comes to hitting and scoring runs there may easily be two perfect explanations for this. One, the work that hitting coach Damion Easley does game in and game out to keep absolutely everything that goes on from the hitting side of the game in tip top conditions. Easley has made it a point to keep their averages at point with the league’s best and also make it a lesson to be learned that it’s best to know how to flood the bases with runners instead of always going for the big hits. Learning how to control the strike zone and with that being able to lure the pitcher into throwing down the plate more has helped San Diego always be in a position to have at least one runner in base most of the time.
The other explanation on the other side, the bragging rights of being able to wear the Padres’ “Swagg Chain”. Manny Machado commissioned a jewel-encrusted necklace that is given to Padres players to wear after hitting homers and/or are named the player of the game. If you haven’t seen the chain, do yourself a favor and check it out. It’s huge, it’s flashy, it’s everything any player would want to show that they just dominated in the field. Padres hitters love that bling and know that the only way to wear it is if you play some great baseball so it’s a win-win situation all around. That chain come the postseason can easily be just as important as any other trophy around.
Hitting Wins Games, Pitching Wins Championships
The heavy schedule has been a burden on the Padres in all fields of the game, including of course, the pitching staff. The Padres pitching staff has an enviable depth to it, making it one of the absolute best units both starting and relieving in the league. But with that said, the Padres need to find a way to maneuver around injury scares and other situations to keep this core going as strong as possible.
A healthy rotation with Darvish, Paddack, Musgrove and Snell all pitching at their best level will absolutely cause havoc in the postseason and especially in a World Series scenario. The Padres don’t really need to worry about scoring runs, if they are able to match their pitching up to par with their
