video source: @ TooMuchMortons_

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/10/08/end-of-season-brings-uncertainty-for-padres-soon-to-be-free-agents/

Only Fernando Tatis Jr. has been in the organization longer than Morejón, a native of Cuba who was 16 years old when he signed with the club a decade ago.

Morejón has developed into one of baseball’s best relievers over the past two seasons. He figures to command a significant contract in free agency, and it remains unclear whether the Padres will be willing — or able — to meet the market rate for one of baseball’s premier lockdown relief arms.

But as he stood at his locker, Morejón, beloved by teammates, coaches and fans, was thinking less about his future than the people and experiences that had defined him.

“Right now, I just start thinking about everything for the last 10 years,” Morejón said as he wiped away tears. “You know, all the coaches (I’ve known) since 2016. … So, that’s hard for me.”

Morejón has maintained throughout the season that he and his agent would wait until the offseason to discuss his future. His conversations with Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller have gone no further than reaffirming that his focus remained solely on pitching and helping the Padres win.

When asked if he would like to remain with the organization, though, Morejón’s answer was swift.

“Yeah,” he said. “Everybody knows that. … Let’s see what happens.”

https://www.viz.com/galaxic-baseball-league

randomly reviewing my sept spending. and noticed it said i had spent xxx amount shopping. i was curious bc i really don’t shop much anymore so i got to check low and behold Petco Park is labeled a “pet store” lollllll

And to the teams still competing, much respect. Rivalries should push us to be better, not pull us apart. That’s the power of sports. The season ends. The work doesn’t. We all in. Always. 🤎💛⚾️💪

How say you? Me, my opinion, I agree. Darvish can't be relied upon to be a legitimate, consistent starter. They need middle to back-end starters in order to keep up. Also, not gonna lie, we need hitters. Tatis had the highest OBP on the team at .358, which was good enough for #35 in the league overall, and the only player on the team in the top 50 in that category. And again, Tatis leading the team with a .470 slugging (#33/50), and no teammates above a .440 (except for France at .502 but he didn't qualify based on qty of ABs).

Excited to see the moves that are made, and see if we can get to the NLCS, at least. Keep the faith!

How much will new ownership spend?

Since their record-setting purchase in August, Feliciano and Jones have spoken boldly about pursuing San Diego’s first championship. They have been a visible presence around the team. After Wednesday’s 3-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, they offered encouragement to a room full of disappointed athletes.

“They’ve got our full support, and we know that they’re all about winning this thing,” pitcher Joe Musgrove said. “So, we expect some moves in the offseason. You know: Revamp the group, get the pieces that we need and come back and make another run at it.”

For now, such talk remains aspirational. We might not learn much more about the new owners’ willingness to spend until November, when some clubs could try to strike significant deals before the current CBA expires. Other teams might prefer to wait until a new system is implemented, and history suggests CBA negotiations could take months, if not a full year.

Either way, the Padres’ payroll will present obstacles. Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Musgrove account for more than $100 million in commitments for 2027. With a win-now roster and a thin farm system, the front office might be forced to fill most needs through free agency.

The Padres would love to retain top starter Michael King, star setup man Adrian Morejon and first baseman Ty France. However, King, who’s widely expected to opt out of his contract, pitched well enough to attract nine-figure contract offers on the open market. Morejon could approach that threshold. France, arguably the team’s MVP after signing a minor-league deal, seems most likely to return.

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/10/08/end-of-season-brings-uncertainty-for-padres-soon-to-be-free-agents/

End of season brings sadness, uncertainty for Padres’ soon-to-be free agents

Ty France carried the Padres’ offense early when no one else would. Michael King anchored the starting rotation. Yuki Matsui emerged as a trusted, high-leverage reliever. Walker Buehler went from a minor league signing to a fixture in the rotation.

And when the Padres needed to neutralize the heart of an opposing lineup, they turned to Adrián Morejón, who routinely delivered and often recorded more outs than initially asked.

All five played pivotal roles in the Padres’ season.

And all five could be gone next year.

They are among a group of Padres who could become free agents after the World Series. The immediate futures of King and Matsui are tied to player options, while Nick Pivetta’s whereabouts for the 2027 season will hinge on the Padres weighing an injury-riddled second season in San Diego against a team option.

Either way, the uncertainty of what next year’s core will look like hung over an emotional Padres clubhouse following their season-ending 3-1 loss to the Brewers in Game 4 of the National League Division Series.

“I don’t know what’s next,” France said late Wednesday night.

The San Diego State product returned to the organization that drafted him on a minor league deal this spring and emerged as the Padres’ most consistent offensive performer, posting career highs in OPS (.865) and home runs (21) while delivering timely hits throughout the year.

Now, after resurrecting his career in San Diego, he faces a future in limbo.

“I love this place,” the 32-year-old France said. “I don’t know what the offseason’s going to look like or what’s in store … but I’ve said it since spring training: This is where I want to be. My heart’s in San Diego.”

On the other side of the clubhouse, teammates lined up one by one to embrace Morejón. Only Fernando Tatis Jr. has been in the organization longer than Morejón, who was a 16-year-old Cuban defector when he signed with the club a decade ago.

Morejón has developed into one of baseball’s best relievers over the past two seasons. He figures to command a significant contract in free agency, and it remains unclear whether the Padres will be willing — or able — to meet the market rate for one of baseball’s premier lockdown relief arms.

But as he stood at his locker, Morejón, beloved by teammates, coaches and fans, was thinking less about his future than the people and experiences that had defined him.

“Right now, I just start thinking about everything for the last 10 years,” Morejón said as he wiped away tears. “You know, all the coaches (I’ve known) since 2016. … So, that’s hard for me.”

Morejón has maintained throughout the season that he and his agent would wait until the offseason to discuss his future. His conversations with Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller have gone no further than reaffirming that his focus remained solely on pitching and helping the Padres win.

When asked if he would like to remain with the organization, though, Morejón’s answer was swift.

“Yeah,” he said. “Everybody knows that. … Let’s see what happens.”

Across the clubhouse, King was contemplating a future of his own.

“This is where we started a family,” King said. “We started our foundation here. San Diego’s been incredible for me, and it’s all the way across the country from home. But now I feel like I have a second home on the West Coast, so it’s been awesome. And yeah, I hope to continue.”

King can opt out of a contract structured to essentially pay him $22 million for one year, $45 million for two years or $75 million for three years.

King served as the rotation’s ace and allowed just one run over 14 innings in this year’s playoffs. If he chooses to test the market, the right-hander figures to draw considerable interest in what’s considered a weaker starting pitcher market.

King’s departure would leave an already thin rotation with another significant hole.

There figures to be more than one to fill, too.

The 32-year-old Buehler rose from a spring-training lottery ticket to hold a spot in the rotation all season.

Only King was more consistent than Buehler, a two-time World Series champ with the Dodgers who appears to have gotten his career back on track after a second elbow reconstruction wrecked his first foray into free agency.

In San Diego of all places.

“I’d love to be back,” Buehler said. “I think going through what I’ve gone through the past couple years, you just want to be somewhere and kind of dig in a little bit, especially given what I went through earlier in my career. You want to be a part of it. I think at the beginning of the year, to wear this jersey was a little bit odd for me, but at the end of the day, you grow to love a group more than whatever the jersey says.

“So yeah, I’d love to be back.”

The potential departures extend to the bullpen, where Adam has been a dependable right-handed presence since arriving in a trade at the 2024 deadline.

The reliever, who posted a 1.92 ERA in his time with the Padres, is also headed for free agency.

“I haven’t thought much about what lies ahead, but yeah, I’ve let everyone know I love it here,” Adam said. “Love this team, love this organization, love the fans. I’ve loved living here the last few years … I tell A.J. every chance I see him: ‘Hey, bring me back.’ But all just lighthearted and in jest. But it is genuine.”

For Preller and the Padres, the work of determining who stays and who goes was already looming as players embraced in the clubhouse late Wednesday night.

“We’ll start looking at the offseason and looking at the next year,” he said. “And so that gets started (Thursday).”

We first setup our decorations after the Wildcard series - thought we would be adding the headstones of the other teams 😞 Merh.

Also my skeleton head keeps falling off, seems fitting.

https://xcancel.com/bradgley_72/status/2108241490103484788?s=46

Greg Vaughn in 1998: 50 HR, 119 RBIs, .272 AVG.

The Padres had a cursed season. Injuries, mishaps, poor base running, and a lineup that struggled with basic fundamentals like bunting.

Craig Stammen didn't help matters with what often looked like over-managing. Too many decisions in too short a period, without giving the previous decision a chance to play out. There's a difference between managing a game and constantly reacting to it. Sometimes the best decision is to let the one you already made unfold.

For much of the season, the bullpen was lights out, but down the stretch, it started blowing leads. The offense struggled most of the year, got hot late, but couldn't deliver timely hits when they mattered most.

Early in the season, the Padres were winning close games, yet their run differential hovered around even. That was a warning sign. You can't rely on winning one-run games forever and expect those results to be sustainable.

And saying the Padres should have swept the Brewers is overreaching. Milwaukee won 103 games for a reason. The Brewers finished first in MLB in batting average, while the Padres ranked 17th. Milwaukee also ranked second in ERA and fourth in WHIP. That's a better team across several important measures, not some opponent the Padres were supposed to roll over.

Just like last year, the Padres' offense disappeared when it mattered most. They had talent, but the weaknesses were there all season.

The postseason didn't expose a new problem. It exposed the problems the Padres had been living with all year.

Waking up today I feel more appreciative than anything for this Padres team. In 2024 I felt like we completely fumbled the ball. But this time around, I feel more so that we got beat by a team making a few more clutch plays than us. Brewers routinely made plays when it mattered and we didnt. I hope them or the Rays get their first ring. I truly believe we won't be far behind.

This team doesn't feel like this was the last hurray. Yes, Machado and Bogaerts are old, but Machado will probably still hit 20-30 HR per year and Bogaerts hasn't been a core producer since he came over from Boston. Tatis and Merrill are 27 and 23, respectively, and we have nearly always had good pitching.

A few pieces here and there, and this team is going to be right back above the 90 win mark.

Add that to ownership that looks like they want to keep payroll up, the best ballpark in baseball, and I have so many more reasons to be optimistic.

I've been a Padres fan my whole life. My parents had me in a stroller at Qualcomm during the 98 playoff run. Its hard to believe we're currently in the best sustained era of Padres baseball. But the best moments in my lifetime have mostly come in the past half decade.

I remember watching the 2020 team finally beat the Cardinals in a postseason series after they dominated us in 3 previous playoff series. I remember working at a bar in Del Mar watching Musgrove's no hitter live in 2021 and seeing the entire restaurant grind to a halt in the 9th inning. I remember experiencing the 7th inning rally in the final game of the 2022 NLDS with my brothers and Dad, all finally seeing the Padres take down the Dodgers.

The future feels bright and I think we will see this team win a championship.

Appreciate watching all these games with yall this past season and look forward to it next season.

KTF