Tingler wants to remain in command of Padres despite collapse

SAN DIEGO – Jayce Tingler believes he deserves to remain manager of the San Diego Padres, despite the biggest collapse in franchise history.

It’s not his decision, of course, and as of Monday night no official announcement had been made about the manager’s fate by general manager AJ Preller, who hired his friend from the Texas Rangers just two years ago.

“I believe in this group,” Tingler said Sunday after the Padres underperformed and finished 79-83. “Of course I want to be a part of the future. I think we are closer to reaching the top of the division than going to the other side. I think we have a lot of talent, I think we have gotten a lot of winning players. That would be a ‘yes’ absolute “.

Led by superstars Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny machado, and with a $ 175 million payroll, the Padres went from a fun-loving group that wowed baseball earlier in the season with their swagger to a team that faded after the trade deadline, when Preller couldn’t add. elements to the faltering rotation of openers. The fan base was elated at reports that the team had acquired Max scherzer of the Nationals, but those reports soon turned out to be premature and wrong, and Mad Max went to rivals Los Angeles Dodgers, along with shortstop. Trea turner, developed on the farms of the Padres.

Then reports came in that some players were unhappy because Preller tried and failed to switch to first base. Eric Hosmer and their strong contract, and the Padres suddenly lost their spark.

Tingler’s control at his job became tenuous during a brutal free fall that saw the Padres go from a one-game lead for the second-place NL wild card on September 9 to being eliminated from playoff contention with seven games to play.

The Padres achieved their 10th losing record in 11 seasons, finishing third in the NL West, 28 games behind the San Francisco Giants.

When asked if the Padres can win with the current coaching staff, Machado objected, saying, “They pay me to play baseball. I don’t care about what the front office does.”

But he added: “Whatever it takes to bring a championship to town, you have to do what you have to do to make that happen. I love the guys we have here, I think we have a tremendous group, I think we have the qualities to getting to where we want to go to take that championship, but it’s just a matter of turning the page now, learning from this and preparing for next year. “

A ROOKIE AS A MANAGER

Tingler had no previous managerial experience above the rookie-level ball and seasons in various Dominican leagues before being hired on October 28, 2019. Tingler led the Padres to a 37-23 record in the 2020 season shortened by the pandemic and his first playoff appearance in 13 years. They beat the St. Louis Cardinals in a wild-card series before being swept in the divisional series by eventual World Series champions the Dodgers. Tingler is 116-106 overall in two seasons.

PRELLER

The general manager still does not have a winning record in a full season since he was hired in August 2014. If he fires Tingler, it will be the third time he has fired a coach. Neither Tingler nor his predecessor, Andy Green, had experience as a major league manager when they were hired.

TATIS

The All-Star shortstop remains a favorite for the National League MVP despite a bumpy season that included two trips to the disabled list due to a troublesome left shoulder injury and also after testing positive for COVID. -19. He was even moved to the gardens for a time in hopes of reducing his exposure to injuries.

Tatis led the National League with 42 home runs in 130 games while hitting .282 with an on-base percentage of .364 and a slugging percentage of .611. He also had 97 RBIs and 25 stolen bases.

NO-NO JOE

It took him to arrive Joe musgrove, a San Diego-area native, to finally end the Padres’ no-hitter drought, which had reached 8,205 games in more than 53 seasons. “No-No Joe,” as he came to be known, released the elusive gem in his second start with San Diego, Texas, on April 9. Musgrove, who went to Grossmont High in suburban El Cajon, was acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates on January 19.

ROTATION

Musgrove (11-9, 3.18) was the only member of the rotation to make all of the starts. Yu darvish, Blake snell and Chris paddack they were inactivated multiple times with various injuries and all finished the season on the disabled list.

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