Even after the San Diego Padres gave third baseman Manny Machado a new 11-year, $350 million deal, the team is open to having contract-extension discussions with closer Josh Hader. The Padres are expected to reach out soon to Hader, who will be a free agent after this season. "It's a great place to be, but at the end of the day business is business," Hader said. The 28-year-old left-hander agreed to a one-year, $14.1 million deal with the team in January to avoid salary arbitration, which is the...

The San Diego Padres and relief pitcher Josh Hader avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to a one-year, $14.1 million deal, according to a source. It becomes the biggest salary in arbitration in MLB history for a reliever. The Padres acquired the left-hander from the Milwaukee Brewers at last year's trade deadline, but was uncharacteristically wild and really struggled overall in 2022. Hader had a 7.31 ERA in 19 appearances in San Diego and finished with a career-high 5.22 ERA (3.45 ...

Devin Williams has been arguably the best setup man in baseball for some time. When the Brewers traded away Josh Hader last Summer, Williams was able to settle in as the main closer and is set to have that role all to himself in 2023. In 2022, Williams had a career-high 60.2 IP with a 6-4 W-L record, 1.93 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 15 saves and 96 Ks. According to Statcast, Williams ranked first in xBA, xSLG and Barrel% in 2022 so there was nothing flukey about what he did last year. Since debuting in ...

San Diego Padres left-hander Josh Hader had a rollercoaster year in 2022. He converted 36 saves but posted career-highs with a 5.22 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. Most of the damage happened after the deadline deal, struggling to a 7.31 ERA on the West Coast and temporarily losing the closer role. Hader's 3.45 FIP sticks out, though, as he struck out 37.0% of batters faced while walking just 9.6%. It wasn't his best season in terms of punchouts, but he posted a 41.6% strikeout rate in the first half and ...

San Diego Padres reliever Josh Hader closed out the final game of the National League Division Series when his club defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3. He pitched one inning, striking out the side and collecting his third save of the playoffs in the process. Hader had 36 saves during the regular season but posted a career-high 5.22 ERA and his lowest strikeout rate (37.0%) since 2017, which lost him the closer role for a bit after being dealt at the deadline. However, the left-hander has been...

San Diego Padres reliever Josh Hader got the call in the ninth inning to close out his club's 2-0 win over the Diamondbacks on Saturday, picking up his 33rd save of the season. The lefty worked around a one-out single as he struck out one batter in the frame, throwing 13 of his 15 pitches for strikes. After a brief hiatus as the team's closer, Hader has picked up four saves since August 31, allowing just one run over the six-appearance span. He owns a disappointing 5.84 ERA and 1.37 WHIP for ...

San Diego Padres relief pitcher Josh Hader picked up his 32nd save of the season in Tuesday's 2-0 win over the Mariners. Hader came in to pitch the ninth inning up by two. He struck the first two hitters out, allowed a single, and got the final out on another strikeout. Hader has been able to get back on the right track after a rough patch and has now converted all but three save opportunities with a 5.98 ERA, 15.05 K/9 rate, and 4.12 BB/9 rate. Fantasy managers may not feel the most ...

San Diego Padres relief pitcher Josh Hader actually locked down a save on Wednesday in the 5-4 win over the San Francisco Giants. Hader gave up one hit and struck out one batter in the scoreless inning of work to pick up save No. 30 on the season. The 28-year-old southpaw has been absolutely atrocious in San Diego since being acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers at the Aug. 2 trade deadline, and he was removed from the closer's role on Aug. 20. It was his first successful save since July 29, and...

San Diego Padres manager Bob Melvin said Monday that relief pitcher Nick Martinez is currently the team's preferred option at closer, per the Athletic's Dennis Lin. He also said that he would like to get Josh Hader back on track soon, perhaps through more consistent appearances. The Padres traded for Josh Hader at the deadline, but he has completely collapsed since then and now owns a massive 6.52 ERA despite his 29 saves. This has been one of the more shocking turns of events in fantasy ...

San Diego Padres relief pitcher Josh Hader put together his worst outing to date on Sunday against the Kansas City Royals. The left-hander was already struggling, but completely unraveled here. He gave up five hits, walking two batters, and allowing six runs, while recording one out. The Padres have already moved on from Hader as their closer. At this point, Hader has basically no fantasy value as he continues to regress.