San Diego Padresthird basemanManny Machado is in the midst of the worst offensive season of his 15-year career.
Machado had been one of the most consistent players in MLB, yet this season he has taken a massive step backwards. He has continued to provide power with 18 home runs and 51 RBIs, but he is not doing much else.
The 33-year-old veteran is hitting just .188 with a .282 on-base percentage and .686 OPS across 89 appearances. All of those marks would be career lows if the season ended today.
His fall-off, along with Fernando Tatis Jr.'s lack of power and Jackson Merrill's struggles, has dramatically affected San Diego's lineup, which has struggled to produce runs all year long.
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The only bright spot of Machado's season is that he has been fully available and has been a clubhouse leader, fighting to keep the Padres in the National League playoff race every day.
However, on Wednesday he missed just his second game of the season against the Arizona Diamondbacks. There was speculation before the game that his absence may have been injury related. During Tuesday's game, Machado fouled a ball directly off his shin and was in clear discomfort.
Fortunately, that was not the case. Padres manager Craig Stammen revealed that X-rays were negative on Machado's shin and his absence was simply a scheduled day off (h/t AJ Cassavell of MLB.com).
Machado will look to return to the lineup Thursday as he attempts to start getting back on the right track. The All-Star break is approaching, which could be a much-needed reset for Machado and the Padres in general, who have struggled since the month of June.
