The 2023 San Diego Padres were brimming with talent and coming off a breakout 2022 season, but the vibes were not quite right. Fast forward to 2024, and the Friars were grinding out wins and exuding an infectious energy. Did cream merely rise to the top, or did manager Mike Shildt rearrange the molecules to make it that way? Well, the organization appears to think it is the latter, and it intends to reward the skipper for his efforts.
Shildt and the Padres are finalizing a two-year contract extension that runs through 2027, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune's Kevin Acee. His positive influence on the clubhouse is apparent, but an 11-win increase and strong showing versus the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the playoffs is what likely persuaded ownership to make this commitment.
The 2019 National League Manager of the Year was controversially dismissed from the St. Louis Cardinals in 2021, but he is making the most of his second chance as a big-league leader. And fans are happy for him.
Padres' Mike Shildt gets his flowers
“This is the way forward!” one person posted on X after the news broke. “Should be 10 year extension!” another said. “He got them playing better baseball and they were my World Series pick, but just missed beating the Dodgers in the NLDS,” a baseball writer asserted. “I’d love this for San Diego and Shildty.”
Despite the departures of Juan Soto and Blake Snell in the offseason, and injuries to the starting pitching rotation throughout the 2024 campaign, the Padres cruised into the playoffs and emerged as a popular choice to win it all. The year ended in bitter defeat at the hands of their hated rival, but Shildt's immediate impact is tough to dispute.
Now, he will get the opportunity to finish the job and help deliver San Diego its first championship. With Joe Musgrove recently undergoing Tommy John surgery and Jurickson Profar, Ha-Seong Kim, Kyle Higashioka and Tanner Scott all entering free agency, it is smart for the Padres to reaffirm their faith in a man who just steadied a wobbly ship.
Will Mike Shildt be the one who oversees its arrival in the ultimate October port? If he is, then many fans will call for a lifetime extension.
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