"Since Machado joined, Tatis Jr. burst onto scene Padres rub people the wrong way" - Analyst blames bias for Merrill, Preller, Shildt snub
The San Diego Padres turned around their season in 2024 after missing the postseason the previous year. They gave eventual World Series champions Los Angeles Dodgers a run for their money, winning two of the first three games in their NLDS showdown. However, they were eliminated after losing Games 1, 4 and 5.
It was a season to remember, but Padres analyst Ben Higgins believes they won't get any awards due to alleged bias.
With the MLB giving out season awards this week, the Padres were in contention in three categories: NL Rookie of the Year, NL Manager of the Year and MLB Executive of the Year. However, they fell short in all of them.
Rookie Jackson Merill lost to Paul Skenes; manager Mike Shildt lost to Pat Murphy and GM AJ Preller lost to Matt Arnold.
"Honestly, it does feel like there is — I don’t know if it’s a conscious anti-Padres bias around the league — but it may be subconscious. Something about the San Diego Padres just seems to rub people the wrong way," Higgins said (00:15 onwards).
"Since Manny Machado joined the Padres since Fernando Tatis Jr burst onto the scene, the San Diego Padres rub a lot of people in baseball the wrong way."
Padres' Jackson Merrill, AJ Preller and Mike Shildt coming off great seasons
Jackson Merrill fell out of favor during the NL Rookie of the Year voting, receiving seven of 30 possible first-place votes. He had played 156 games, batting .292 along with 24 home runs and 90 RBIs.
Merrill was the most clutch player in baseball during the second half. But he fell short to Paul Skenes, whose sub-2 ERA and 150+ strikeouts made him the first rookie pitcher since integration to record such numbers.
AJ Preller, general manager of the Padres, was aggressive in the trade market while keeping his assets. Even in the Juan Soto trade, he acquired Michael King, who went on to pitch at an elite level.
All that while, he was competing against the likes of the Los Angeles Dodgers in a highly competitive NL West division, where, apart from the Colorado Rockies, all seemed like postseason contenders.
Meanwhile, Mike Shildt, in his first year as Padres manager, finished second to Milwaukee's Pat Murphy for the National League Manager of the Year Award. After leading the club to the, he got his due, signing an extension that will see him remain the Padres manager until 2027.