Machado keeps mashing, looks to finish year strong
Colin Henderson dives into San Diego Padres 3B Manny Machado's hot streak and how he could be a key figure for managers after Fernando Tatis Jr.'s injury.
Video Transcript
- It's been a nice little week for Padres third baseman Manny Machado. Over his last seven games, the 29-year-old is hitting 440, with four home runs, and eight RBIs scoring seven times.
This hot streak brings his season line to an impressive 284 361 521 with 20 homers, 75 RBIs, 66 runs scored, and 9 stolen bases on the year entering Monday. The 75 RBIs currently lead the National League.
Unsurprisingly for those who have been following Machado for years, none of his production has been anything close to a fluke. He is currently in at least the 95th percentile and just about all of the important stat metrics, including average exit velocity, hard hit percentage, expected batting average, expected slugging, and expected weighted on base average.
He's walking at a career high clip while on his way to setting his highest stolen base totals since the 2015 season when he bagged 20 basis. For those worrying about Fernando Tatis' injury, and its effects on Machado, I would not fret too much or downgrade him amongst his fellow third baseman.
The Padres are still plenty talented around him, especially with a deadline acquisition of Adam Frazier who leads the National League in hits and should be on place plenty for many to knock in. Obviously, a healthy Tatis is beneficial. But Machado looks primed to finish out the year strong and continue to make good at the early end of his $300 million contract.