Manny Machado has been everything the Padres paid for when he arrived in San Diego in 2019. Now fully healthy once again, 2025 could be his best yet in a Padres uniform.

The Padres have gotten what they paid for with Manny Machado, beginning with that record-breaking contract ahead of the 2019 season. Over six seasons, he has amassed 23.4 WAR (third in franchise history). He also maintained a solid 128 OPS+ (10th-best in San Diego history). Oh, and he is now the Padres’ franchise home run king, passing Nate Colbert last season.

He also has two different seasons in a Padres uniform where he placed in the top three in NL MVP voting. He is the only Padre ever to have multiple seasons finishing in the top three for MVP votes (2020, 2022). Machado has earned MVP votes in four of his six seasons in San Diego thus far.

In 2024, he played most of the season, recovering from offseason elbow surgery. He didn’t look like himself at the plate or third base until well into June. Still, he put together a season most third basemen would love to have: 3.1 WAR, .275 AVG, 29 HR, 105 RBI, 120 OPS+.

Now, picture him with a fully healthy offseason. Not only that, but Machado has not had many normal Spring Training lately. Whether it’s his participation in the World Baseball Classic, the lockout-shortened spring of 2022, recovering from an injury, or even back to the COVID season of 2020, Machado’s springs as a Padre have been far from normal. 2025 offers a rare, “normal” spring for Machado.

That could spell trouble for the rest of the league.

The 32-year-old didn’t need long this spring to declare he is feeling good.

Manny's first pitch, Manny's first home run 😎 pic.twitter.com/8iwwUS5egC

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) February 21, 2025

After a slow start to last season, he finished hot. From June 4 through the end of the year, he batted .295 with a stellar .868 OPS in 94 games. His 141 wRC+ in that timeframe ranked 11th in the National League. Despite that slow start, he still ranked in the 93rd percentile for average exit velocity and bat speed and 90th percentile for hard-hit rate. Those are even better numbers than in 2023.

Imagine if he can put together those kinds of numbers over a full season after finally feeling all the way back this year.

There certainly is precedent for Machado playing like an MVP in a Padres uniform. His 2022 campaign was one of the best of his career and best in Padres history. With 6.7 WAR and a career-high 157 OPS+, he nearly became the second Padre ever to win NL MVP, finishing as the runner-up. He dealt with an ankle injury much of 2023 and rehabbed from surgery in 2024. Now, with a fully healthy spring and, hopefully, a healthy 2025 season, he should look more like his 2022 self.

Machado is on a Hall of Fame trajectory. He will reach the 2,000-hit and 350-homer plateaus this year. Yet, it feels like he is still in his prime.

Another 6-WAR, 30-homer campaign doesn’t seem so farfetched. He is clearly the leader of this Padres team in the clubhouse. He now enters his seventh season with the club, which is how many he played in Baltimore.

Obviously, competition in the National League for MVP has never been fiercer, with Shohei Ohtani fresh off his second straight MVP. Plus, 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr. is back from injury. Expecting Machado to actually win MVP seems a bit much. However, given the fact that this has been one of the healthiest, “normal” offseasons of his Padres tenure, it’s not impossible to imagine him earning top-five MVP votes once again.

If he does, that only improves San Diego’s chances of making the playoffs and further solidifies his resume as a possible future Hall of Famer.

Nick Lee

Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.