{"id":220968,"date":"2025-09-12T13:32:11","date_gmt":"2025-09-12T13:32:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/220968\/"},"modified":"2025-09-12T13:32:11","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T13:32:11","slug":"manny-machado-keeps-posting-and-slumping-when-will-the-padres-finally-rest-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/220968\/","title":{"rendered":"Manny Machado keeps posting \u2013 and slumping. When will the Padres finally rest him?"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN DIEGO \u2014 It was late Tuesday at Petco Park when Manny Machado described an apparent respite from one of the worst slumps of his career. The star third baseman had again failed to record a hit. He had unleashed his frustration<\/a> on an ice chest in the home dugout. The San Diego Padres had lost to a supposedly inferior team by two runs, wasting another opportunity amid a division race. Yet, for Machado, there was still something to celebrate: Five pitches into his first start at Petco Park, an opposing player had hit his second big-league home run.<\/p>\n

The same player is a close friend and offseason workout partner. So, when Cincinnati Reds rookie Sal Stewart crushed a first-inning solo shot off Padres starter Michael King, Machado smiled at his 21-year-old prot\u00e9g\u00e9<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was fun to watch,\u201d Machado said. \u201cI think he watches a lot of Padre games, so for him to come here and hit one in front of me, it was pretty cool. It didn\u2019t impact the game. I know Michael didn\u2019t love it too much, but yeah, it was cool. Cool moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

The soundbite, coming less than 30 minutes after a collective defeat, demonstrated what makes Machado one of the sport\u2019s most polarizing athletes. Few players possess his level of talent or combination of durability and productivity. Few tend to vacillate like Machado does between exhilarating and frustrating supporters.<\/p>\n

Deep into a season that might represent one of his best remaining chances to win a World Series, the 33-year-old has skewed toward the latter end of that spectrum. The Padres beat the historically awful Colorado Rockies, 2-0, on Thursday to move to 6-11 in their past 17 games. Their 20-18 record since a wild trade deadline is better but still underwhelming, given the amount of help that was acquired. Meanwhile, Machado has been the most prominent culprit for San Diego\u2019s recent stagnancy, even as he continues to pace the league in a certain category.<\/p>\n

Just three other players \u2014 Philadelphia\u2019s Kyle Schwarber and Atlanta\u2019s Ozzie Albies and Matt Olson \u2014 have started every game this season. Machado remains behind only the New York Yankees\u2019 Paul Goldschmidt in total appearances since 2015. In three of the past five years, his ability to \u201cpost\u201d has fueled Padres runs into the postseason while enabling Machado to pile up the kind of numbers that should one day put him in the Hall of Fame<\/a>. In this season\u2019s first four months, he batted .302 with 20 home runs and an .871 on-base plus slugging percentage, carrying a mediocre offense and collecting his 2,000th career hit along the way.<\/p>\n

But since Aug. 1 \u2014 the day after the Padres revitalized their lineup with the additions of Ram\u00f3n Laureano, Ryan O\u2019Hearn and Freddy Fermin \u2014 Machado has batted .188 with three home runs and the worst 38-game OPS of his career (.537). In that span, he ranks 170th out of 174 qualifying players in OPS. The Padres, with their No. 3 hitter performing at a below-replacement-level clip, are 16th in runs scored \u2014 better than they were before the trade deadline, but still underwhelming.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt sucks that it\u2019s happening at this moment, but yeah, it\u2019s part of the game,\u201d Machado said Tuesday of his slump. \u201cAs long as we\u2019re winning games and we\u2019re in a good spot, it\u2019s all that matters. It doesn\u2019t matter what I\u2019m doing; my stats don\u2019t matter. It\u2019s about winning ballgames at the end of the day. So if I can contribute \u2014 I\u2019m not doing much right now to do it, doing my part \u2014 but yeah, as long as we win games, that\u2019s all that matters.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Manny Machado is one of only four major-league players who have started every game this season. (Sean M. Haffey \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Machado spoke less than a week after he acknowledged some weariness to reporters. He added, following a sweep-sealing loss to the Baltimore Orioles: \u201cThere\u2019s no time to take a day off. You know, I should\u2019ve taken one earlier on in the year, but at this point, there\u2019s 22 games left (in the regular season), and \u2026 you got to go out there and play.\u201d<\/p>\n

It has not taken a professionally trained eye to notice that Machado is dragging at the plate and in the field. The veteran has consistently missed crushable pitches while continuing a gradual decline as a formerly transcendent defender. Machado has long been known to play through minor ailments and more significant injuries, but fatigue appears to be a larger factor at the moment. Aside from the All-Star break, he has not gone multiple days this season without playing baseball. With shortstop Xander Bogaerts on the injured list and the team\u2019s reserve infielders providing little offense, Machado has started 22 consecutive games at third base.<\/p>\n

This stretch stands in contrast to previous years. In 2024, as Machado worked his way back from elbow surgery, he served exclusively as a designated hitter until late April. (He never ended up starting more than 14 consecutive games at third base.) In 2023, a hand fracture forced Machado to the injured list for the first time in almost a decade; that was before his then-cranky elbow prompted the Padres to make him their DH for all of September. In 2022, Machado seriously sprained his ankle, refused to go on the IL and sat for only 10 days before returning.<\/p>\n

That mixture of determination and stubbornness has helped make Machado one of his generation\u2019s most valuable players. Considering his status as the owner of a $350 million contract, it has also encouraged multiple Padres managers to tread carefully when raising the idea of resting the infielder.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve spoken to him about it,\u201d manager Mike Shildt said last week. \u201cI\u2019m going to trust the guy, and there\u2019s a possibility for that. But Manny\u2019s a guy that\u2019s going to post and wants to post. \u2026 He\u2019ll say, \u2018My day off\u2019s the (team\u2019s) day off. But yeah, it\u2019s in consideration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thursday, after a series loss to the Reds, Machado was back in the third spot in the lineup for the 140th time this season. (He has batted second six times and cleanup once.) Team officials have weighed the possibility of sitting Machado during Sunday\u2019s series finale against the Rockies; doing so before Monday\u2019s off day in New York would result in 48 hours of much-needed rest.<\/p>\n

Still, pursuing a series win figures to take precedence. Before the opener, hitting coach Victor Rodriguez suggested he would not be surprised if Machado broke out with his first three-hit game in more than a month, \u201cbecause that\u2019s who he is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Manny\u2019s good, he uses the whole field,\u201d Rodriguez later added. \u201cHe\u2019s a hitter before a power hitter, and lately, it looks like his focus has been away from the big part of the field. If he gets back to the big part of the field, we\u2019re going to get that side out of Manny.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then, the game began. In the top of the first, Machado booted a ground ball for his 16th error of the season. He grounded out to short in the bottom of the inning. He partially atoned in the top of the third with a pair of slick plays.<\/p>\n

But his offense remained in a rut. His final three at-bats went like this: groundout to third, three-pitch strikeout, popout to the catcher. Facing the majors\u2019 worst pitching staff, the Padres produced limited offense beyond a solo home run from center fielder Jackson Merrill and a three-hit night from No. 2 hitter Luis Arraez, who, like Machado, has slumped for much of the past several weeks.<\/p>\n

Afterward, Shildt praised those contributions, as well as an impressive outing by right-hander Randy V\u00e1squez. The manager also fielded the latest in what has become a stream of questions about Machado\u2019s ongoing struggles.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe game gets you in a spot that can be a little challenging at times. It\u2019s as simple as that,\u201d Shildt said. \u201cThe fact of the matter (is) he\u2019s still Manny, who\u2019s an All-Star, a Gold Glover and a pillar of our team. So, he\u2019s going to be just fine. We\u2019ll look up, and it\u2019ll be a blip on the radar.\u201d<\/p>\n

That, of course, is the hope. October looms, and as is so often the case, the Padres\u2019 performance seems to approximate that of their franchise third baseman. There are only 15 games left for Machado to regain at least some form heading into the most critical month of the year; as of late Thursday, FanGraphs put the team\u2019s playoff odds at 98.9 percent.<\/p>\n

What percent is Machado playing at? With the answer being somewhere well below 100, would he look forward to potentially resting for a game or two after the Padres clinch a return to the postseason?<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, that\u2019d be nice, for sure,\u201d Machado said, \u201cbut let\u2019s get there first.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Top photo: Sean M. Haffey \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n