JUAN SOTO

The San Diego Padres will head into the offseason with a whole bunch of what-ifs.

The San Diego Padres will head into the offseason with a whole bunch of what-ifs? What if manager Bob Melvin had brought in closer Josh Hader to face Bryce Harper? What if Trent Grisham had swung away?

San Diego Padres pitchers Mike Clevinger and Sean Manaea had outings in Game 4 of the NL Championship Series they’d quickly like to forget.

The Philadelphia Phillies hit four home runs to beat the San Diego Padres 10-6 and take a 3-1 lead in the National League Championship Series.

Jurickson Profar lost his cool just before the San Diego Padres lost the game.

Jurickson Profar lost his cool just before the San Diego Padres lost the game. With a runner on first and no outs in the ninth inning and the Padres trailing by two runs in Game 3 of the NL Championship Series, Profar thought he checked his swing on a 3-2 pitch from Phillies reliever Seranthony Domínguez. Profar slammed his helmet, yelled an expletive at Tichenor and then kicked his helmet before being ejected by plate umpire Ted Barrett.

Kyle Schwarber homered and Jean Segura hit a two-run single to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-2 win over the San Diego Padres for a 2-1 lead in the National League Championship Series.

Aaron Nola and the Philadelphia Phillies were rolling along this postseason.

The Phillies were close to taking a commanding 2-0 lead back home to Philadelphia. But the Padres' bats came alive to tie the NLCS at one game apiece.

Brandon Drury hit a go-ahead, two-run single during a five-run rally in the fifth inning and the San Diego Padres stunned Aaron Nola and the Philadelphia Phillies 8-5 to tie their all-wild card NL Championship Series at one game apiece.

Juan Soto, Manny Machado and unlikely star Trent Grisham went silent for the San Diego Padres, giving the Petco Park faithful little to get loud about in the city’s first NL Championship Series since 1998.

Bryce Harper homered again, Kyle Schwarber hit a jaw-dropping, 488-foot drive and Zack Wheeler was brilliant in throwing one-hit ball for seven innings to lead the Philadelphia Phillies over the San Diego Padres 2-0 in the opening game of the all-wild card NL Championship Series.

As a rare October rainstorm drenched Petco Park in the eighth inning, nobody at the packed downtown home of the San Diego Padres flinched.

Jake Cronenworth hit a tiebreaking, two-run single with two outs in the seventh inning and the San Diego Padres rallied past the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3 to advance to the NL Championship Series for the first time since 1998.

Manny Machado homered early and added an RBI double off Clayton Kershaw, and Jurickson Profar singled home the go-ahead run in the sixth inning as the San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3 to even their NL Division Series at a game apiece.

Trea Turner homered and doubled as the Los Angeles Dodgers started fast and held off the San Diego Padres 5-3 in their NL Division Series opener.

The San Diego Padres knocked off the 101-win New York Mets in the National League wild-card series.

Joe Musgrove brushed off chants of “Cheater!”.

Pete Alonso launched a tiebreaking homer and Jacob deGrom pitched well enough to help save the New York Mets’ season with a 7-3 victory over the San Diego Padres that evened their wild-card playoff series at one game apiece.

For two teams that finished second fiddle in their divisions, the Padres and Mets bring an awful lot of star power into the playoffs.

The entire Major League Baseball playoff picture is now set.

The San Diego Padres are going back to the playoffs for the first time in a full season since 2006, a spot that they clinched during the seventh inning of a 2-1 loss to the Chicago White Sox.

The San Diego Padres clinched their first playoff berth in a full season since 2006 when the Milwaukee Brewers lost 4-3 to the Miami Marlins in 12 innings.

Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies hoped to be in this position.

Manny Machado and Brandon Drury hit back-to-back home runs in a five-run eighth inning, Wil Myers also went deep, and the San Diego Padres beat Colorado 13-6 in the Rockies’ final home game of the season.

Blake Snell held St. Louis hitless until Albert Pujols beat the shift for a single with two outs in the seventh inning and the San Diego Padres beat the NL Central-leading Cardinals 1-0.

Aaron Judge and Albert Pujols could make this a milestone week for home runs.

Aaron Judge and Albert Pujols could make this a milestone week for home runs. Pujols, meanwhile, is somewhat improbably closing in on the 700-homer mark after hitting 12 since the start of August. Judge's pursuit of Maris has stirred debate over how to put this AL record in context, should he break it.

“It turned a pretty bad experience into a very good one,” said the fan who’d had the ball stolen at Sunday’s Royals game.

This Royals fan made a nice catch of a Juan Soto home run, then was robbed of the souvenir.

The San Diego Padres have replaced a planned Fernando Tatis Jr. bobblehead night with a Juan Soto T-shirt giveaway after the superstar shortstop was banned 80 games following a positive test for a performance-enhancing drug.

San Diego and new slugger Juan Soto repeatedly failed to come through in the clutch against his former club, and the last-place Washington Nationals beat the wild-card-chasing Padres 4-3.

San Diego Padres manager Bob Melvin says he reached out to suspended All-Star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. in a phone call.

San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. has been suspended 80 games by Major League Baseball after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance.

San Diego Padres dynamo Fernando Tatis Jr., one of the brighest, freshest stars in all of Major League Baseball, was suspended 80 games on Friday after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance. The penalty imposed by MLB was effective immediately, meaning the shortstop cannot play in the majors this year for the postseason-contending Padres. MLB said the suspension — making Tatis one of the most prominent players penalized for PEDs — also will knock him out of playing for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.

Brandon Drury hit a go-ahead, three-run home run in the sixth and Austin Nola’s two-run homer capped a seven-run rally that carried the San Diego Padres to a wild 13-7 win against the San Francisco Giants.

Manny Machado hit a game-ending, three-run homer and Juan Soto connected for his first long ball with the San Diego Padres, who overcame a blown save by Josh Hader to beat the San Francisco Giants 7-4.

Cody Bellinger hit two homers, Tyler Anderson allowed two hits over seven innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers completed a statement-making sweep of the revamped San Diego Padres with a 4-0 victory.

A few days after the Padres outmaneuvered the Dodgers for Juan Soto, San Diego rolled into Chavez Ravine with a formidable new lineup and big plans to raise a few questions about Los Angeles' dominance. The Padres are headed home from a sobering weekend knowing the Dodgers still have all the answers. Cody Bellinger hit two homers, Tyler Anderson allowed two hits over seven sparkling innings and Los Angeles completed a statement-making sweep of the revamped Padres with a 4-0 victory Sunday.

The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 8-3 for their seventh consecutive victory.

Tony Gonsolin pitched five scoreless innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers threw a four-hiter against the San Diego Padres’ supercharged lineup, winning 8-1 after honoring Vin Scully.

Juan Soto got multiple ovations in his first game with the Padres and Brandon Drury did even better.

Juan Soto has arrived at Petco Park promising to bring “good vibes” to the San Diego Padres and issuing a warning to opposing teams.

Nick Castellanos hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning as the Philadelphia Phillies took full advantage of an overturned call to beat the Atlanta Braves 3-1.

Juan Soto is set for his San Diego debut at home Wednesday night against Colorado.

This is quite a time to be a season ticket holder for the San Diego Padres.

Jacob deGrom allowed one run on three hits and struck out six in five innings in his season debut before a bullpen meltdown cost the New York Mets in a 5-1 loss to the Washington Nationals.

Baseball’s trade deadline day was an action-packed affair — and no one had more fun than the Padres.

After contributing to the Nationals’ first championship in franchise history in 2019, Soto hit .351 in 2020 to win the NL batting title.

San Diego acquired the superstar outfielder in one of baseball's biggest deals at the trade deadline, vaulting their postseason chances by adding one of the game's best young hitters.

The San Diego Padres have acquired superstar outfielder Juan Soto from the Washington Nationals in one of baseball’s biggest deals at the trade deadline.

The Juan Soto sweepstakes come down to the wire, with baseball’s trade deadline fast approaching at 6 p.m. EDT.

When Juan Soto turned down a $440 million, 15-year deal to stay with the Washington Nationals, it ensured Tuesday’s trade deadline would have a little juice.

When Juan Soto turned down a $440 million, 15-year deal to stay with the Washington Nationals, it ensured Tuesday's 6 p.m. EDT trade deadline would have a little juice. A quick glance at the standings shows at least 18 teams with legitimate playoff aspirations — 18 clubs that might benefit from Willson Contreras, Josh Bell or Frankie Montas, among others. With Soto, there could be even more bidders than that.

Juan Soto could be the biggest star dealt before the Major League Baseball trade deadline if the Washington Nationals choose to make that move.

Luis Garcia hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning and the last-place Washington Nationals rallied past the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-3 for their second straight win against the NL West leaders.

Juan Soto’s RBI triple capped a four-run fifth inning and the lowly Washington Nationals defeated the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers 4-1.

Washington star Juan Soto is sure to get asked about his near future during a three-game series at Dodger Stadium that starts Monday night.

The Los Angeles Dodgers surged past the San Francisco Giants with a seventh-inning rally and won 7-4 for their season-high eighth consecutive victory.

Breakout rookie Julio Rodríguez and the Mariners can match a franchise record with their 15th consecutive win as they open a home series against AL West-leading Houston.

Catcher Keibert Ruiz looks like a keeper, but Bell, Gray and Garcia are tougher calls. And can the team afford Soto?

Soto beat Cleveland's José Ramírez 18-17 in the first round before getting past 42-year-old Albert Pujols 16-15 to reach the final, which he won 19-18 over Julio Rodriguez.

Washington Nationals star Juan Soto won his first Home Run Derby.

The trade deadline became a bit more suspenseful this past weekend when the Athletic reported that Washington outfielder Juan Soto turned down a $440 million, 15-year contract offer to stay with the Nationals. Suddenly, social media was ablaze with talk of Soto possibly being traded, and what kind of incredible offer it might take to acquire him. A deal involving the 23-year-old superstar would be seismic because of his talent, his youth and the fact that he's not due to be a free agent until after the 2024 season.

A six-run lead in the ninth inning wasn't enough for Giants manager Gabe Kapler, and the Nationals took exception. With two outs in the top of the ninth on Friday night and San Francisco ahead 7-1, the Giants' Thairo Estrada took off on an 0-1 pitch and Brandon Crawford blooped a single over Washington shortstop Alcides Escobar, who grabbed the ball and threw out Estrada at the plate.

Will Strasburg bounce back from surgery? Will Corbin and Robles hit their strides? Unknowns make interesting baseball.

Nelson Cruz quickly showed the Washington Nationals he could bring more than a booming bat to his new team. After standing in the batter’s box as Erick Fedde threw a live bullpen, Cruz approached right-hander with a message: He was tipping his pitches. “I saw something before he threw me the last pitch,” Cruz said Thursday.

Christian Vázquez tripled home the tiebreaking run in the ninth inning and the Boston Red Sox moved to the brink of a postseason berth with a 5-3 win over the Washington Nationals on Saturday. Boston is tied with the Yankees for the top AL wild card entering the final day of the regular season. The Red Sox will send ace Chris Sale to the mound Sunday needing a victory to punch a playoff ticket.

Major League Baseball wouldn’t be what it is if it weren’t for the star power of its athletes. The best baseball players aren’t renowned just by the fans of the game, but also by the world outside baseball. Major League Baseball is filled with young players who have already shown that they have what it takes to become the future icons of the sport. These are the best players in the MLB under 25 years old:Bo BichetteThe 22-year-old shortstop for the Toronto Blue Jays has shown promise as one of the best hitters in the league. Although Jimenez has only begun playing in the major league in 2019, he’s already proven that he is worth the hype.

The Washington Nationals stunned the Houston Astros 6-2 in a winner-take-all Game Seven on Wednesday to secure their maiden Major League Baseball World Series title in a Fall Classic unlike any other. Manager Dave Martinez #4 of the Washington Nationals hoists the Commissioners Trophy after defeating the Houston Astros 6-2 in Game Seven to win the 2019 World Series at Minute Maid Park on October 30, 2019 in Houston, Texas. Washington Nationals catcher Yan Gomes (10) celebrates after defeating the Houston Astros in game seven of the 2019 World Series at Minute Maid Park. The victory set off celebrations in Washington, a city whose last World Series victory came in 1924 when the Senators defeated the New York Giants. Fans react to the World Series Game 7 on a big screen just a block from Nationals Park at Walter's Sports Bar on October 30, 2019 in Washington, DC.