For San Diego Padres fans, better known as the Friar Faithful, 2025 has been another season worth celebrating. This is an organization that has developed a winning culture, surrounded by star players like Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr, Luis Arraez and Xander Bogaerts. But perhaps equally important are an excellent cast of veterans and youngsters that provide amazing team chemistry and depth off the bench. As a result, San Diego will play baseball in October for the fourth time in six years. Despite that success, there's still plenty of anxiety. You see, the Padres always seem to find a way to break your heart. The team's last appearance in the Fall Classic occurred in 1998 when they were swept in four games by the New York Yankees. It wasn't until 24 years later, in 2022, that the Friars would come close to knocking on the door again. But when Bryce Harper blasted a bomb off Padres closer Robert Suarez, the Philadelphia Phillies ended those hopes in the NLCS. Then last season, San Diego had the Los Angeles Dodgers on the ropes, only to drop the final two games at Chavez Ravine in the same tournament. As usual, the Dodgers would win the NL West, with the Padres nailing down second place as the current campaign concludes. The parity has been fierce however, with San Diego, the Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets and even the Cincinnati Reds looking to nail down a post season spot. And unless things change dramatically, the Padres will have to face the Cubs at Wrigley Field instead of Petco Park in a Wild Card round. "We wanted to host because our fans deserve it," noted slugger Ryan O'Hearn, one of several key players acquired by GM A.J. Preller at the trade deadline. "It's an electric atmosphere here every night." At this writing, the Friars still have an outside chance of securing home field advantage. But those chances took a hit last Wednesday, 9/24, when the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers clipped the Pads in the final game of that series. Probably even more devastating though, was the loss of Ramon Laureano, who broke his right index finger in an at-bat during the second inning of that contest. The Dominican veteran has anchored left field since his arrival with O'Hearn from the Baltimore Orioles. Laureano has been one of San Diego's best hitters, not to mention an immaculate glove and a key part of the team's running attack on the bases. "Ramon has been fantastic for us," said Padre skipper Mike Shildt. "He's a winning player and it hurts. But we have to figure out a way to move forward." Likely to platoon in Laureano's absence is Bryce Johnson, a speedster and excellent defender, and Gavin Sheets, a legit power source from the left side. Another red hot hitter at the moment is veteran infielder Jose Iglesias, who can play third, shortstop or second base with equal skill. And now that Bogaerts is healthy after a lengthy stint on the IL, the defense is rock solid again. Like the Dodgers, injuries to the Padres starting mound rotation has been a bit of a revolving door. But health has returned to most, and solid arms are ready to go, especially in a short series. Nick Pivetta and Michael King are the likely starters in the first pair of games, with Yu Darvish or Dylan Cease set to go if a third contest is necessary. Each pitcher has their own personal catcher. For whatever reason, Pivetta is more confident with former Rockies slugger Elias Dias behind the dish. The remainder of the staff seem to prefer Freddy Fermin, who perfected his craft catching behind Sal Perez for five years with the Kansas City Royals. Indeed, Freddy calls a good game, throws out runners with regularity, and pitchers tend to trust him. What gives the Padres an edge against other playoff teams in the upcoming tournament is its air tight bullpen. Starters know that if they can hold a lead after six innings and 75 or 80 pitches thrown, San Diego's relievers will seal the deal. Even with the loss of all-star Jason Adam, the Friars can mix and match with Jeremiah Estrada, David Morgan and southpaws Wandy Peralta, Kyle Hart and Adrian Morejon, who has won 13 games in relief. Then there's Mason Miller, who consistently clocks out at 103 mph with a wipeout slider. The former A's closer has served in that role with the Padres, but that job still belongs to Suarez, who throws almost as hard as Miller, but also has a filthy "cambio." So is this Padres club as good as last year's edition? I think so, although the Phillies and Dodgers are also just as potent. The Brewers too. But first things first. Regardless of where they play, San Diego's pitching will smother the Cubbies, and the Friars will move on to the next round.
