Joc Pedersen might be a full-time designated hitter at this point in his career. The San Diego Padres currently don’t have a DH on their roster. Pedersen and the Padres are a perfect fit. 

San Diego saw its season end in a whimper when the Padres lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Division Series. The goal was to win a World Series, but the Friars ran out of steam and firepower in Games 4 and 5. They went on to watch their hated rivals win a world title. 

General manager A.J. Preller has holes to fix in his roster ahead of 2025.

Donovan Solano and David Peralta are free agents, as is Jurickson Profar. It’s not certain if any of these three will return. The Padres would like to keep Profar in the fold, but he will come with a higher price tag after his breakout season. This leaves the Padres without three reliable bats if Profar doesn’t return. It also leaves a question mark at the DH position.

Enter Joc Pedersen. Entering his age 33 season, the left-handed slugger should expect phone calls from several teams. San Diego should be one of them. Pedersen brings lineaments the Padres need. He’s left-handed, has a load of postseason experience, and has an attitude the team lacked in this past season’s playoffs. 

The Padres and Dodgers played a tense 5-game series that featured beef between Manny Machado and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. The Dodgers used this as fuel to come back from a 2-1 deficit. Their hitting came alive. Dodger pitchers shut out the Padres in 24 consecutive innings. The tenacity just wasn’t there. Pedersen will change that should these two teams clash again in the 2025 postseason. 

Pedersen is left-handed 

The Padres currently have two hitters in their starting lineup who hit from the left side of the plate — Jake Cronenworth and Jackson Merrill. The team needs at least one more lefty to keep the lineup balanced. 

With his power, Pedersen can be slotted somewhere near the middle of the lineup. Merrill and Fernando Tatis, Jr. will bat somewhere in the top three. Machado will likely hit in the cleanup spot. Putting Pedersen in the No. 5 slot in the lineup gives Machado needed protection. 

Pedersen had a .908 OPS with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2024. Adding a high OPS guy all but ensures that the 2025 Padres lineup is just as potent as last season. With that, Pedersen stays in the National League West, a division he’s more than familiar with. Pedersen has played for the Diamondbacks, Dodgers and San Francisco Giants in his career. 

A plethora of postseason experience

Pedersen won a championship with the Dodgers in the shortened 2020 season. He won another World Series with the Atlanta Braves in 2021. He has played on seven playoff teams, six of those with the Dodgers. Pedersen has played in 79 playoff games in his career, reaching the World Series three times. 

Bringing on a player with World Series experience only helps the Padres. This team is still looking for its deep October run.

It makes sense to add someone who has been on a deep run multiple times. 

A pit bull-like attitude

Pedersen doesn’t back down from opposing players. He doesn’t back down from hecklers, either. In 2022, he hit a go-ahead home run in Milwaukee before yelling some … let’s call them unkind … words at a fan heckling him. 

Also, in 2022, he got into an altercation with former Padre Tommy Pham over a disagreement in their fantasy football league. A GIF was also involved. It was enough to provoke Pham to slap Pedersen across the face eight months after the fact. 

After seeing how the NLDS played out, I think the Padres could use this kind of attitude on their roster. Having a pit bull in the dugout might make opposing teams think twice about starting beef. Tensions run high in the postseason, and it can get inside players’ heads. Having a guy like Pedersen on their team could give the Padres an advantage.

This signing makes sense. Pedersen and the Padres are a good fit. Giving him a 2-year deal could make both sides happy. The Padres would have their pit bull, and Pedersen would have another chance at a postseason run.

Mike Ursery

Mike is the sports editor for the Fayette Advertiser, and has been with East Village Times since 2015. His work has appeared on Bleacher Report. He is an avid Padres fan who is keeping the faith and trusting the process.