Padres shortstop Xander Bogaerts is the third highest paid player on the team after Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado. His 11-year, $280 million contract that he signed prior to the 2023 season says he needs to perform at a similar level in order to justify his status.
Bogaerts knows that he has not done that so far for his team:
“Not being able to play the way you want to … I know how much I expect of myself, and when you’re not able to do that, it is extremely frustrating. I’ve always held myself to high standards,” Bogaerts said of his recent performances last week, according to MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell. (Article written April 29)
Prior to the series versus the Giants on April 29, Bogaerts had 5 RBI for the season without having hit a home run in the first month of the year. His .243 average over the first month came with some defensive miscues that earned him 3 errors early in the season. It also earned him some boos from the Petco Park crowd during home games.
In an article written by Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Bogaerts spoke about getting back to who he used to be. The guy the Padres signed to that big contract before the 2023 season.
“I think that’s it,” he said. “That probably has a lot to do with it. Going back. I think just going back to the old me.”
The details were not shared about how he would adjust but Bogaerts has history with Padres hitting coach Victor Rodriguez. They were together in Boston when Rodriguez was an assistant hitting coach for the Red Sox.
“People here have not seen the real Xander,” Rodriguez said. “They have not seen what I have seen, what I know is there.”
In the days leading up to the Giants series, Bogaerts and Rodriguez began working on bringing back the old Bogaerts swing. From April 29 through May 5, Bogaerts has 8 RBI and three multi-RBI games. He is 8-for-26 over the last seven games and has raised his average to .254 from .239 by hitting .305 over those games.
(To jump into the stats a bit, Bogaerts has also been a bit unlucky so far this season. His BABIP (batting average for balls in play) is .326 so he has hit better than his line suggests but has not gotten the results he would hope.)
Bogaerts improvements have coincided with Luis Arraez and Jason Heyward returning to the lineup after stints on the IL. Heyward, who has played 15 years in the league and has seen plenty of Bogaerts in that time, said: “That looks like Bogey right there,” said left fielder Jason Heyward after the April 28 game versus the Giants, when Bogaerts began his recent streak.
Before coming to the Padres, Bogaerts excelled for the Red Sox from 2015 to 2022. He was top eight in batting average at .299 and earned five Silver Slugger awards in that time. After beginning the 2023 season as the Padres shortstop, Bogaerts suffered a left wrist injury. After his return off the IL he hit .321 in his last 71 games of that season. In 2024, Bogaerts suffered a left shoulder injury that put him on the IL for two months. After returning to the team he hit .299 for the final 64 games.
His track record with Boston, as well as his injury history over the last two seasons, suggests that what Victor Rodriguez said is accurate. Padres fans have not seen the real Xander Bogaerts. At 32 years old he is still in the prime of his career, it is not too late for that guy to show up and help the Padres to their first World Series championship.
For perspective, the Yankees Aaron Judge is a few months older than Bogaerts and still producing at a high level. There is no reason to think that the Padres should doubt that Bogaerts is still capable of good things.
