The momentum of the San Diego Padres is hardly burning. Even after spending close to 1 trillion won last winter, San Diego is not overtaking the league. Manager Bob Melvin, who is called the ‘deokjang’ of Major League Baseball, is not satisfied with his current performance and is angry.
San Diego suffered a 3-5 come-from-behind loss in a game against the Minnesota Twins held at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA on the 12th (Korean time). Starter Darvish Yu had 4 hits (1 home run), 1 walk, 7 strikeouts, and 2 runs in 6 innings, but the bullpen was struggling, and the other line was silent with 1 hit in 7 at-bats in scoring range, facing a come-from-behind defeat. With two consecutive losses, the season ended with a 19-19 record.
San Diego, shouting ‘Down with the Dodgers’, once again reaffirmed its will to go higher than last year’s performance (advancing to the National League Championship Series). Last winter, they acquired Xander Bogarts (11 years, $280 million), who will be the starting shortstop in the free agent market. He signed a six-year, $108 million contract extension with veteran starter Darvish. He also signed an 11-year, $350 million contract extension with clubhouse leader Manny Machado. They spent 738 million dollars and 986.7 billion won to seat three people. A situation in which a large amount of money, close to 1 trillion won, was invested in Hanwha. It goes without saying that you have to get good grades.
In addition to them, Fernando Tatis Jr. has returned from suspension and another big contract candidate, Juan Soto, is still with him. Although he boasts a fielding team in ultra-luxury lineups such as Kim Ha-seong and Jake Cronenworth, his current performance is not good. Even after spending close to 1 trillion won last winter, it is still standing at a 50% win rate, and it is lagging behind the Los Angeles Dodgers (23-15) and even the Arizona Diamondbacks (20-17) in the National League West division rankings.
Now, the San Diego team seems to be feeling the seriousness. On this day, manager Bob Melvin was ejected for strongly protesting the ball decision in the 8th inning. He could have interpreted it as giving a message to the players by being immortal until he was sent off. According to MLB.com, the atmosphere in the San Diego clubhouse after the game was unusual. At the clubhouse, coach Melvin strongly criticized the players.
The media said, “Last winter, while San Diego was struggling in postseason competition, the mood for the season changed dramatically when coach Melvin got angry.” I got very angry once. In his 20-year head coaching career, Melvin rarely elevates his squad, but after a 3-5 loss against Minnesota, he gave a speech to his squad,’ he explained.
In an interview with local media, coach Melvin said, “We have to do better. We are players who can do better and we will,” he said. “But now we have to stop talking about this. We played another disappointing game for ourselves. It is a poor grade,” he said with strength.
“We have to fight a little harder and make people expect more. Me too. This situation lasted too long. We need to get out of this situation quickly.”
The players also agreed and responded to coach Melvin’s advice. Tatis Jr. said, “I agree 100% with what director Melvin said today. We think we can do it well enough. “Everything depends on us,” he said. “We are in crisis. Whoever your next opponent should play better. First of all, we have to play against the Dodgers like the Division Series game. We have to go up one step further,” he said, feeling the responsibility that the team should work harder.