Manny Machado was listed to bat cleanup again Friday night, giving the San Diego Padres the same No. 4 hitter for a second straight game before their series opener against the Texas Rangers. The move came after he went 1-for-3 with an RBI in the Padres’ 6-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Padres opened the three-game series at Globe Life Field with Machado in the middle of a lineup that had him hitting fourth for the second consecutive game. The club entered at 38-35 and nine games back of the Los Angeles Dodgers, so the batting order around him carried a clear short-term focus: get more out of a veteran bat that has still produced 36 RBIs in 71 games.
Machado’s No. 4 role
Machado has primarily hit fourth this season, but the numbers around that spot show why the Padres are still sorting through the best fit. He has batted in the No. 4 spot in 42 games, hit.197 there with a 93 WRC+, and is hitting.177 overall. That line includes 46 hits, 11 doubles, 12 home runs, 33 runs, 36 RBIs and one stolen base.
The deeper issue is the shape of his production. His.615 OPS is the lowest of his career, even though he signed an 11-year, $350 million contract after finishing second in MVP voting in 2022. Seven years remain on that deal after this season, which puts every lineup decision around him under a brighter light than a normal late-June tweak.
Padres after the Cardinals win
Friday’s decision followed a 6-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, a game in which Machado went 1-for-3 with an RBI. That box score is part of the reason the Padres kept him in the same place: they are not asking him to reinvent his role, only to keep giving them a run-producing at-bat near the top of the heart of the order.
The Padres have gone 5-5 over their last 10 games after a strong start, so the lineup choice fits a team trying to steady its offense without making a bigger shakeup. Machado remains the pivot point here. If he keeps delivering in the cleanup spot, the Padres have a cleaner answer for how they want to attack the middle of the order; if not, the same spot could start looking temporary.
Randy Vásquez and Jacob deGrom
Randy Vásquez was scheduled to make his 15th start for the Padres, entering with a 6-4 record and a 3.63 ERA across 74.1 innings. Jacob deGrom was set for his 15th start for the Texas Rangers, carrying a 5-4 record and a 3.17 ERA across 76.2 innings.
That pitching matchup put even more weight on the first few trips through the order. Machado’s place in it was already set, and the only real question left was whether the Padres would keep him there beyond one more night.
