San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado has already put collectively a formidable profession.
Machado is a six-time All-Star and a two-time Gold Glove award winner. He has completed within the prime 5 of the MVP vote 4 instances, ending second within the 2022 NL MVP race. Machado has posted a .279/.338/.488 batting line with 342 homers and 363 doubles in his 7,517 plate appearances, a efficiency that seems to have Machado on the trail to the Corridor of Fame.
The 2025 season is prone to be one to recollect for Machado. Not solely is he eight homers away from 350 residence runs in his profession, however he’s 100 hits away from the two,000-hit plateau and 9 runs away from reaching 1,000 runs in his profession. Solely 100 gamers have hit no less than 350 homers of their careers, leaving Machado on the cusp of an unique place in MLB historical past.
Machado can be distant from retirement. The 32-year-old is simply two years into the 11-year, $350 million extension he signed forward of the 2023 season. The contract ends when Machado can be 41 years outdated, presumably locking him in for the remainder of his profession.
It isn’t a stretch to say that Machado will proceed climbing the leaderboard. With 9 seasons left on his extension, he would most likely attain the 500-home run, 3000-hit, 500-double and 1,500-RBI plateaus. (He has 1,049 RBI getting into the 2025 season.) Ought to that be the case, Machado would grow to be the eighth participant in MLB historical past to hit these marks. Three of these gamers — Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Eddie Murray — are already in Cooperstown. Two others — Miguel Cabrera and Albert Pujols — will be a part of them when eligible.
An excellent defensive third baseman, Machado has proved to be worthwhile on the scorching nook. He’s the energetic chief with 57.8 bWAR at third and ranks sixteenth all-time. Each third baseman within the prime 9 is within the Corridor of Fame; Machado might attain that group in three or 4 extra years.
Machado has developed in different methods on the diamond. He broke into the majors at 19 years outdated and had maturity points. Nevertheless, he has grow to be a frontrunner with the Padres, praised by the group and is the unofficial captain of the crew. Machado has come a good distance from his early days, and the trail might finish with him taking his place among the many internal circle of Corridor of Fame gamers.
