Did you expect the Padres to walk off the Diamondbacks for their second consecutive walk-off win the other night for Game 2? I did.
Obviously, I was disappointed in the result and losing the series. Then…. I laughed. I laughed at how CRAZY I am to feel anything but joy and gratitude for this team and its growing community.
I, a relatively intelligent human of sound mind, expected the San Diego Padres to come back from down 3+ runs against the reigning National League champions not once but TWICE. Like… do you get how crazy of a sentence that is to read and write? This team and these players made me believe that was possible. And you know… they almost did it! I have been a Padres fan for 20+ years and cannot remember having that kind of confidence in another group of players. So it was disappointing to read so many popular negative comments on the post game thread. Wandy this, Schildt that, De Los Santos done. I was starting to feel a little sour myself, bemoaning another "wasted" year of missing the playoffs when I realized the only emotion I should have is an overwhelming sense of gratitude. How freaking lucky am I to be a Padres fan right now?
Our bullpen is a disaster?
- That’s a strong take for a group that includes consecutive-strikeout record-holder Estrada and All-Star closer Suarez. How many other teams would kill for our BP issues?
We have exciting playmakers.
- Not one. Not two. Not three. You can pick a name out of a hat. Nearly everyone has contributed. We were nervous about our starting pitching in the preseason and now we have national media talking about one of OUR pitchers bringing about a knuckleball renaissance. I remember when nobody cared about us. Nobody cared.
We have stories and memories (just THIS year).
- Repping MLB abroad in Seoul (and beating the Dodgers)
- Down 8 runs to the Cubs and win
- Profar/Manny vs. Nationals
- Matty Knuckles
- Bobby Bullets
- ROY candidate Jackson Merrill
- … and on and on and on and on and on….
FIVE players will represent SD in the All-Star game.
- That makes 15 total Padre All-Stars from 2021-2024.
- You need to go back to the late 90s to find a similar stretch of All-Star representation when names like Ken Caminiti, Trevor Hoffman and Tony Gwynn were voted in.
Padres had/have one of the biggest payrolls in the league.
- Forget that the money didn’t buy a ring last year. Fans have an ownership that is willing to INVEST in the team. Back in the day a breakout performance by someone like Jackson Merrill just meant saying goodbye to them was inevitable; traded away or allowed to walk to where the money was. NOBODY. CARED. about. us.
Padres rank in the top for stadium attendance.
- Most of the Padres games of my youth were spent alone in a half-filled stadium, drowned out by chants for the AWAY team. It is surreal to see sold-out crowds and home-team colors. People. Care. Please don’t take it for granted. It is awesome.
I refuse to be a “World Series or bust” team. Apart from it being a stupid and meaningless phrase, it negates the infinite supply of positives these players continue to provide. Win or lose, these games are more fun, competitive, available, engaging, and exciting. For that, I am really, truly, grateful. And if you find yourself kicking a pebble with your hands in your pockets because the Padres lost a game, I feel you. I hope you can take a breath and also find some things to be grateful for because…honestly… we have it pretty damn good.
6 comments
This is such a refreshing reminder. I remember going to games ten years ago and looking at the lineup each time like who?!?
Hell yea dude. Well said. LFGSD
Yesterday, I stood in Petco at 10pm and watched as a capacity crowd, still in their seats and cheering despite the Padres trailing by 3 runs, tried to will the team to its second walk-off in a row against the reigning NL Champions.
I have not seen a crowd fill out the seats that well – and I mean fill, asses in seats up to the very corner of the nosebleeds – or stay that engaged and active since the 2022 playoffs.
Your post is a great reminder of something that I think is, or will now be, clear to anyone who has followed the team for more than the past three years: we are currently in “the good ol’ days”.
Now, here’s hoping that there will be a lot more to show for them, but even if there isn’t, long after the bandwagon fans and doomers have left, you’ll look back on these times and say “damn, remember when any home game that wasn’t a sellout was a failure?” or “remember how fun that team was?”
At best, this is the start of a new era of Padres baseball where sellouts and playoffs are the expectation, but until that is solidified as a reality, let’s not let the doomers ruin the fun, because *at worst* this team is incredibly fun to watch for the first time in at least two decades (raise your hand if you were at Petco for the playoff losses to St. Louis in consecutive seasons…). If you ask me, that is a pretty damn good start to Peter’s legacy, and showing up to support this team can only help us to build on it.
I do think a lot of the newer/doomer Padres fans are too scarred by 2023 to realize that yes, the season is very long. There’s always going to be ups and downs and there have been teams that have made a WS that started off with losing records (in other words teams CAN turn things around)
I saw a meme where a guy turns off an nfl game and is pretty calm, “we’ll get them next week”. But then when he watches a baseball game he freaks out when the team loses.
Everyone wants to win a WS, everyone wants to win, but that’s a very difficult process, especially without the power of hindsight
Padres baseball in 2024 is infinitely more uplifting with a far brighter outlook than it was exactly 10 years ago. In spite of still searching for a ring, it feels like we’re a legitimate baseball team that can, not only play but, be relevant in conversations about baseball.
It sounds like small or vain thing, but being a Padres fan doesn’t feel like a “wtf why? Are you from SD or something?” I am but that’s not the point, it simply feels more comforting knowing the team is going somewhere and I have something meaningful to root for every night.
Totally agree last year we had no full time hitting coach and a wet noodle manager who couldn’t get us ahead in any close game. This year we lead the league in batting average, I believe, and we have a manager who I believe has put us in the right place with all the walkoffs and come from behind victories.