PEORIA, Ariz. -- The Padres are taking steps to ensure their offense will be better in 2026.
It has to be.
The core remains in place. But even with many of the same players back in the starting lineup, the Padres need more from this offense -- after a season that sputtered to an end with just five runs across a three-game NL Wild Card Series exit at Wrigley Field.
On Sunday, as the Padres held their first full-squad workout at the Peoria Sports Complex, there were reasons to believe in that turnaround.
Over the past week, the Padres have added Miguel Andujar and Nick Castellanos. They should enter the season with a much better array of bench/DH options than last year’s mix. Meanwhile, there’s been a change at manager and at hitting coach -- and perhaps a shift in the organization’s hitting philosophy.
Then again …
“In the end, it's not about a philosophy,” said new manager Craig Stammen. “In the end, it's about those players individually putting in the work to be the best that they can be. And that will make our team be the best that it can be.”
A resurgence from the stars
It’s hard to be too critical of the Padres’ offensive core. Fernando Tatis Jr. posted an .814 OPS last season. Manny Machado had a .795 mark. Jackson Merrill’s was .774. Solid enough.
But given the talent of that trio, the Padres can reasonably expect more.
The biggest issue last season was a glaring one: The Padres did not slug. They finished 28th in home runs (152) and 22nd in slugging percentage (.390). The quickest avenue for fixing that? More production from the superstars, who have proven themselves capable of slugging before.
“You’re only as good as the players you have, and … there’s a lot of really good players in this offense,” said new hitting coach Steven Souza Jr.
A year ago, Tatis, Machado and Merrill combined to hit 68 home runs. Again, not bad. But based on past performance, it’s reasonable to expect that number to be closer to 80 or 90.
“We obviously have the ability to slug,” said Souza. “There’s no doubt about that. You look at the roster, there’s power up and down the lineup.”
So … how do they tap into that power?
A philosophical shift
Souza isn’t shying away from the Padres’ identity last season. It wasn’t a terrible offense. Petco Park is a notoriously difficult place to score, yet San Diego still finished near the middle of the pack in runs scored (18th). The offense had its strengths -- notably, the ability to make contact and hit situationally. Still, the lack of power proved costly far too often, particularly in big games.
Enter Souza, who takes over for Victor Rodriguez after he left for the same role in Houston. Speaking with reporters for the first time on Tuesday, Souza said he wanted to find an approach that maximized the Padres’ potential, without sacrificing last season’s strengths.
“I want to be able to play the game that we need to play,” Souza said. “At Petco Park, sometimes the ball’s not going to carry. These guys have the ability to downshift, take a different club in the bag, and move the ball all over the field. Then, at times, we’re going to need to slug. And they can do that.
“I think not limiting this roster to just one type of team -- that’s what I want to do. Controlling the zone is probably a big part of that, picking the pitches that we want to damage on.”
Souza, who is 36 and entering his first coaching role, has a tough job in front of him. It’s been a revolving door at hitting coach in San Diego, where it’s harder to hit at Petco Park than just about anywhere else.
But Souza’s offensive philosophy has been molded by a couple forward-thinking organizations when it comes to hitting. He played for the Rays and spent the past two seasons in their front office, and he played with the Dodgers under hitting coach Robert Van Scoyoc, with whom he has deep ties.
“Being able to take those things, what they were doing, and make my own identity out of it -- that’s probably what I’ll try and do,” Souza said.
Changing personnel
There was at least some interest from the Padres in a reunion with Luis Arraez, before he signed with the Giants for one year, $12 million. Arraez was largely respected in the clubhouse and was the poster child of the Padres’ contact-oriented approach. But their decision not to match that offer should say plenty about the direction in which they wanted to move offensively.
Castellanos, despite his shortcomings defensively and a low on-base percentage, has averaged 23 homers across the past three seasons. Miguel Andujar and Sung-Mun Song aren’t enormous power threats. But they can run into a few homers. There are questions about Luis Campusano defensively. But the catching tandem of Freddy Fermin and Campusano should be wildly more prolific than the Elias Díaz-Martín Maldonado duo that started last season.
This season should also bring a far more balanced offense. Last year, the Padres’ lineup skewed lefty-heavy, and they struggled against left-handed pitching. That’s where Andujar and Castellanos come into play. Andujar has always crushed lefties. Castellanos has better splits against left-handers, too.
“Whenever you're trying to fill out a roster, you're trying to fill out pieces to the puzzle,” Stammen said. “Obviously, would we like 13 Manny Machados? I think we'd do all right with 13 Manny Machados. But that's just not how it's going to work.
“It’s: Can we fit those pieces together that complement each other? Not just individual pieces. But make a collective offensive group that goes out together as all 13 position players trying to beat that pitcher, beat that team.”
In order to do that, the Padres will need a more balanced and powerful offense in 2026. They believe their offseason moves have set them up to have exactly that.