Why should they be considered contenders
After starting the 2021 MLB season 34-22 the San Diego Padres are seriously looking like the team to beat. With the off-season additions, they really have become a power team in the NL West. It looked like the Los Angeles Dodgers who are coming off a World Series Championship would be dominating the NL West for another year. The Padres are showing more threat this season and with their additions, it could seriously be something to look out for. Fernando Tatis Jr. is having a breakout season and terrorizes pitchers every game.
In a division where there are the likes of the Los Angeles Dodgers who have all stars like Clayton Kershaw, Trevor Bauer, Cody Bellinger leading the team, the San Francisco Giants who have been promising this year with players like Mike Yastremzki, Buster Posey, Evan Longoria and Brandon Crawford they could be a potential threat towards this year. The Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies are the weakest teams but could still derail these teams playoff hopes.
How did the Padres do previously
But with the additions that the Padres made, they look like a team that could make it to the World Series and eventually win the whole thing. The Padres looked like an exciting team last season in the shortened MLB Season due to the Covid Pandemic. Their postseason appearance in 2020 was their first playoff berth since 2006. But with big investments in free agency and offseason/in-season trades. the Padres were led by the bats of Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr, Will Myers and Eric Hosmer, which led them to a record of 37-23.
Who were the key additions
This season looks even better, especially with the addition of 2017 CY young Winner Blake Snell who played for the Tampa Bay Rays last season. Snell was lights out last postseason and was one of the reasons why the Rays made it to the World Series last season. The next big offseason addition that the Padres made was acquiring Chicago Cubs Pitcher Yu Darvish who was coming off an amazing year for the Cubs. Padres were looking to add some depth or some elite stars into their pitching and they made the right moves in the offseason and gives fan an even bigger reason why they might go all the way.
Many expected the Dodgers to keep dominating the NL West, but with the rise of a couple of stars, the Padres are not a team that should be forgotten. And with the way that they have been playing recently, teams should really not sleep on them because they are in some type of feeling and are going to become a real threat and which could potentially lead to them dominating the NL West in the coming years.
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