The San Diego Padres reinstated 3B Manny Machado from the 10-day injured list ahead of Friday's game versus the Chicago Cubs, per the Padres' Twitter. San Diego also placed DH Nelson Cruz on the 10-day IL with a right hamstring injury. Additionally, 1B Alfonso Rivas had his contract selected from Triple-A and C Luis Campusano was transferred to the 60-day IL, completing a busy day of roster moves for the Padres.
Injury concerns have been rather problematic for San Diego in 2023. Underperformance has also been an issue. For Manny Machado, he's unfortunately dealt with both.
Prior to landing on the IL, Machado was slashing just .231/.282/.372 with a .654 OPS and five home runs across 170 plate appearances (40 games). Machado was an NL MVP finalist in 2022 and has an impressive track record, so the Padres fully expect him to bounce back. There's no denying his early-season struggles though.
Nelson Cruz has been in MLB since 2005. He's still an intimidating presence at the plate, but has also labored in 2023. Cruz is slashing just .238/.270/.381 with a .651 OPS and three home runs in 36 games. But he will still be missed given the Padres' disappointing offensive output this year.
San Diego currently sports a 26-30 record, placing them 7.5 games back in the NL West. They certainly aren't out of the division race, but the Padres need to get things going soon. If they continue to deal with frustrations during the month of June, it will officially be time to panic. Perhaps Manny Machado's return will help the ball club get back on track.