SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — It's All-Star break time in baseball, and there's a lot to celebrate for the San Diego Padres through the first half of the season.
Let's take a look at how the team and it's top players have fared so far.
Five All-Star Selections
The Friars are sending five players to the All-Star Game: Manny Machado, Robert Suarez, Jason Adam, Adrian Morejon and Fernando Tatis Jr. That's tied for the second-most selections by a single team this season. Only the Detroit Tigers have more with six.
Big-Time Bullpen
To say the Padres' bullpen has been unstoppable would be an understatement. All relief pitchers have combined for a 3.20 ERA, good enough for the 2nd-best of any bullpen in the MLB. That, to go along with the league-leader in saves (28), Robert Suarez.
Their work so far helped the Padres make All-Star history, becoming the only team ever to send three relief pitchers to the midsummer classic.
The Best Being the Best
Where would the Padres be without Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr.? With his selection this year, Machado secures his 7th trip to the All-Star Game and 4th as a starter.
When he takes the field at Truist Park for Tuesday's game, it'll be eight days after recording his 2,000th career hit. A huge milestone.
Tatis Jr. is chasing a milestone of his own. He's on pace for a 30-30 season (30 home runs and 30 stolen bases). He sits at 16 and 19 respectively. Fewer than 50 players have ever done that in a single season. This is his 3rd trip to the All-Star Game.
Tracking the Trends
No one started this season hotter than the Padres, topping the MLB standings through April 22nd. With a 17-7 at that time, it was tied for the team's best start in franchise history.
It wasn't lonely at the top, though. Three other NL West rivals were right there with them (Dodgers, Giants and Diamondbacks), showing how competitive the division was at the beginning of this season.
Now at the All-Star break, the NL West looks a little different. The Dodgers are the top dogs, while the Padres find themselves back by 5.5 games. If the season ended today, the Friars would sneak into the postseason as the final NL Wild Card team, sitting just 0.5 games ahead of the Giants.
But, the season doesn't end today. There's a lot of baseball left to be played.
If history is any indication though, the last time the Padres started a season 17-7 was in 1998. They went onto win the pennant and play in the World Series.
Just sayin'.
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