Padres Make Manny Machado Announcement on Thursday originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

After winning the first two outings of their four-game series against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park in San Francisco, the San Diego Padres failed to sustain their form, as they lost the final two contests.

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They punctuated that series with a 3-2 loss on Thursday night, but if there’s one positive takeaway for San Diego from that contest, it’s that star third baseman Manny Machado reached a major milestone with his 350th career home run in the big leagues.

San Diego announced Machado’s impressive achievement with a post on social media.

“Manny is the moment,” San Diego’s caption read.

The six-time All-Star put the Padres on the board first with a two-run home run off Giants starter Robbie Ray in the top of the third inning.

After a ball and a strike in Ray’s first two offerings, respectively, Machado turned on the pitcher’s 82 mph knuckle curve for a 391-foot dinger that also drove Luis Arraez home for a 2-0 Padres lead.

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Machado joins a short list of active MLB players who have hit at least 350 homers in the big leagues. Giancarlo Stanton of the New York Yankees is on top of that list with 429, while Mike Trout (388) of the Los Angeles Angels and Paul Goldschmidt (368) of the Yankees are second and third, respectively. Freddie Freeman of the Los Angeles Dodgers is fourth with 352 blasts.

Padres third baseman Manny Machado (13) hits a two-run home run against the Giants.Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

Still just 32 years old, Machado should be able to reach the 400-home run plateau potentially by 2026 or 2027. Through 61 games in 2025, the two-time Gold Glove winner has hit .317/.382/.498 with eight home runs and 31 RBIs.

Related: MLB Makes Strong Manny Machado Statement After Padres Game

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 6, 2025, where it first appeared.

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.

San Diego Padres star Manny Machado enters Monday’s series opener against the Los Angeles Angels on an 11-game hit streak. Machado is currently tied for the longest active streak in Major League Baseball.

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In the last stretch of 11 games, the Padres third baseman is hitting .452 with a .511 on-base percentage, a .619 slugging percentage, and an OPS of 1.130.

Machado is 19-for-42 with four doubles, a home run, nine runs batted in, five walks, and 11 runs.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 05: Manny Machado #13 of the San Diego Padres celebrates after hitting a two run home run during the first inning in Game One of the Division Series at Dodger… LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 05: Manny Machado #13 of the San Diego Padres celebrates after hitting a two run home run during the first inning in Game One of the Division Series at Dodger Stadium on October 05, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. More Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images

Machado did not boast about his red-hot start to the 2025 season and instead highlighted the good work from the Padres as a collective.

“I don’t really think about that stuff, I take it day by day,” Machado told local San Diego radio station 97.3 The Fan. “Go out there and just have some good at-bats. Team is playing well, pitching staff is keeping us in the dugout by getting quick outs. We’re just on a roll overall as a group. When things like that happen, it’s just fun to be apart of.”

Manny Machado discussed Yu Darvish’s impending return to the Padres and what’s factored into how strong he’s started off this season: pic.twitter.com/lcxNMGRjtS — 97.3 The Fan (@973TheFanSD) May 12, 2025

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The Padres are currently second in the National League West, an impressive feat for a team that’s been hampered by injuries in baseball’s best division. Several key players have spent time on the injured list this early this season, including Luis Arraez, Jake Cronenworth, Jackson Merrill, and Yu Darvish.

Darvish began the season on IL, but is expected to throw a bullpen at Petco Park Monday.

“Little by little, we’re getting our guys back,” Machado said. “As long as their healthy and doing what they need to do, I think we’ll be back at full strength at some point.”

Heading into the season, Padres manager Mike Shildt acknowledged the team had unfinished business after making a first-round exit in the playoffs.

“We start at zero,” Shildt said. “We build off of last year. We know we did some things well last year, did a lot of things we consider to be successes. … But also, like I alluded to, we have some unfinished business. We’re going to start at zero.”

The Padres, despite the myriad injuries, have made good on that promise 39 games into the season. The Friars are just one game behind the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have the best record in MLB.

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The San Diego Padres and Manny Machado seem like a match made in heaven. The superstar third baseman has been exactly what the franchise has needed.

After spending seven seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, it’s been the same amount of time in San Diego. As Machado explained to the San Diego Union Tribune, it’s a dream.

“I’ve spent more time here than I did in Baltimore, and I felt like we spent a lifetime over there as well,” Machado said. “It’s kind of unreal.”

During his time with the Padres, Machado has had an impressive stint. He’s been to three All-Star games and placed in the top three in MVP voting twice.

San Diego has been on a roll to start the season. They are 27-18 and sit comfortably in second place in the National League West. They still trail the Los Angeles Dodgers, but are putting serious pressure on them.

The fans have loved it too, as they rank second in total fan attendance this season. Guys like Machado are must-see baseball, and are contributing mightily to the team’s success.

Manny Machado loves his time with the Padres

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Although the immediate World Series success hasn’t been there, they’ve been close a handful of times. In 2022, they went all the way to the NL Championship Series, where they lost in five games.

Since then, they’ve undergone some managerial changes, as well as roster moves. In 2024, they went to the divisional round and lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in an entertaining five-game series.

The winner of that series was likely going to move onto the World Series.

Even though San Diego lost some key players, the culture is still there. Being second place in a tightly contested NL West division is impressive.

Making the playoffs is what matters, and Machado understands what it takes. Funny enough, Machado had entered himself into the greatest Padres of all-time discussion.

No matter what, he’s hoping to add a World Series to his already impressive resume.

A day after exiting after four innings with cramping in his right calf, Manny Machado is back in the lineup at third base and in the three-hole as the Padres look to secure a season-opening four-game sweep of the Atlanta Braves.

Sunday’s first pitch is 4:10 p.m. on ESPN.

The Padres haven’t won four in a row to start a season since 1984, when they swept the Pirates in a two-game series in San Diego and followed that up with two wins against the Cubs.

They’ll attempt to repeat the accomplishment of the franchise’s first NL pennant winner with almost the same lineup as the previous two games. The only change is Elias Díaz getting the start behind the plate and in the nine-hole instead of Martín Maldonado, who caught the previous two games.

Machado seemed to be trending in the right direction after exiting after the fourth inning on Saturday. The cramping surfaced on a swing during his at-bat. He flied out on the next pitch and was replaced by Jose Iglesias at third base.

After the game, Machado told reporters, “I’m good. It’s just a little cramp. I think (manager Mike Shildt) did the right thing taking me out, being precautionary so it doesn’t become something more.”

It generally takes quite a bit of pain for Machado not to play.

He infamously avoided the injured list after a bad ankle sprain in 2022, played through elbow tendonitis for some two years before finally having surgery after the 2023 season and has played in at least 150 games in nine of his first 13 years in the majors.

“Manny’s one of the toughest hombres in the business,” Shildt said Saturday night. “ … He posts. He shows up, you know? He was raised to go play. Now of course, a day like (Saturday), got a situation where we don’t want to see it get any more serious. We’ll see about (Sunday). But you know this guy, if he’s banged up, bruised up, he’s gonna post, and that’s what winning players do. And Manny’s a winning player, and he likes to play baseball.”

Machado is 2-for-9 with two doubles, an RBI, three runs scored and two steals to start the year.

Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jackson Merrill are tied for the team lead with five hits each and Merrill leads the Padres with four RBIs.

On the flip side, Luis Arraez (0-for-9) and Jason Heyward (0-for-8) are still looking for their first hits of the season, as are bench options Iglesias (0-for-2) and Brandon Lockridge (0-for-2).

Here is how the Braves will line up for the series finale looking to avoid a four-game losing streak:

Sunday’s pitching matchup

Braves RHP AJ Smith Shawver (0-0, 0.00 ERA in 2024)

The 22-year-old debuted in 2023 but made just one start last year (4 1/3 IP) before he was asked to start in place of an injured Chris Sale in the wild-card series against the Padres. Smith-Shawver allowed three runs on four hits and a hit batter in 1 1/3 innings.

Only catcher Elias Díaz (1-for-3, HR, K) has regular-season history with Smith-Shawver, but Tatis Jr.’s two-run homer was among the four hits that he allowed the Padres in Game 1 of the wild-card series last October. Arraez and Merrill both singled and Jake Cronenworth was hit by a pitch before he was lifted.

Padres RHP Nick Pivetta (6-12, 4.14 ERA in 2024)

The former Red Sox starter is making his Padres debut after posing a 3.38 ERA across four Cactus League starts (13 1/3 IP). Pivetta struck out 10 over 11 innings (4.09 ERA) across two starts last year against the Braves (1-1), but he has a 4.93 ERA over 100 1/3 career innings against Atlanta.

Here is how Pivetta has fared against current Braves:

The competition between the

San Diego Padres

and the

Los Angeles Dodgers

is among the most intense in Major League Baseball. Both teams compete for the

National League West

title every year, but the Dodgers have been on top in recent years.

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This time, San Diego Padres star

Manny Machado

made a big statement about his team’s chances. His bold words took a lot of notice from the public, most of the ones on the Dodgers’ side. But will things be different this season?

Manny Machado and the San Diego Padres’ Bold Claim

On February 20, 2025, San Diego’s Manny Machado addressed reporters regarding the coming season. He made it clear that the Padres are aiming for the National League West title.

“We are ready to handle some unfinished business,” said Manny Machado.

His words went viral, as numerous Dodgers fans responded in laughter. Social media sites such as X (formerly Twitter) were full of posts from Dodgers fans. Most fans noted that they hear this type of thing from the Padres every year, only to have the Dodgers win.

One fan posted, “They say this every year,” and another quipped, “They will finish 15 games back.”

Some also stated Machado speaks about the Dodgers more than his own team.

Although the reaction online was negative, Machado remained confident. He believes that the Padres can compete despite having had a rough offseason.

Manny Machado’s Confidence in the Padres

San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado was interviewed on February 25, 2025, by

MLB Network

analyst

Yonder Alonso

and was full of confidence about his team’s chances in the next season.

“Last year, nobody expected us to do well, but we proved people wrong,” he said.

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He admitted that the Padres lost some of their big players, but he still has faith in the talent of the team. Machado himself had a solid 2024 season, with 29 home runs and his team making it to the playoffs.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Dodgers face some issues too. Injuries to their main players might make it tougher for them this year. Although most fans do not trust the Padres, Machado and his team are committed to competing.

The race in the National League West is going to be thrilling.

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