The San Diego Padres went big at the trade deadline with a flurry of deals -- highlighted by the blockbuster acquisition of Juan Soto. With a revamped roster, they were able to not only secure a playoff spot, but stun the 101-win New York Mets in the wild-card series. Then, even more amazingly, the Pads upset their National League West rivals, the 111-win Los Angeles Dodgers, in the NL Division Series. In the end, though, their magic ran out against another underdog -- the Philadelphia Phillies -- in the NL Championship Series.
Overall, a pretty positive season at Petco Park. But there are questions looming over the franchise, headlined by the loss of superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. to an 80-game ban following a positive PED test. Here's a look at the biggest issues surrounding San Diego as it heads into the offseason.
San Diego Padres
Notable free agents: 1B Josh Bell, INF/OF Brandon Drury, SP Sean Manaea, SP Mike Clevinger, OF Wil Myers (club option), RP Craig Stammen
The Padres set a franchise record with an Opening Day payroll of roughly $175 million to begin the 2021 season, nearly $70 million more than their previous high. In 2022, they upped it to about $211 million. The question is: How much higher can they go in order to get over the hump? They already have $137 million committed to just 11 players for 2023 -- and that doesn't include the significant arbitration bumps of Soto and Josh Hader, who are projected to command somewhere in the neighborhood of $35 million through arbitration in 2023.