2023 Padres Season Review: Michael Wacha

2023 Regular Season Statistics

2.6 fWAR, 24 G, 134.1 IP, 3.22 ERA, 1.161 WHIP, 124 K, 43 BB, 15 HR, 3 HBP

Positives From This Season

Michael Wacha was able to make over 20 starts and for the most part was a reliable arm that Bob Melvin could put out there every fifth or sixth day and know he was going to be able to give San Diego 6+ innings (he did that 13 times). He allowed three or fewer earned runs in 19 of his 24 appearances this year, posting his best ERA since 2018.

“Tremendous pickup,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said about the offseason signing of Wacha. “Everything he brings to the table from his competitiveness to his clubhouse presence — everything. This is a really good pitcher and a sensational year for him.”

The Padres can guarantee that Wacha returns by picking up his two club options for $32 million ($16 million in 2024, $16 million in 2025). It will be a tricky decision because he’s probably worth a little bit less than that per year but then the Padres risk losing him to another team if they decline the options.

Negatives From This Season

Wacha hit the IL for about a month (right shoulder inflammation), which thrust guys like Matt Waldron, Ryan Weathers and Jackson Wolf into major league action. What if Wacha would’ve been healthy for his starts? Would the Padres have made the postseason? We’ll never know.

There were also some outings where Wacha didn’t locate as well as he should’ve and therefore he ended up getting knocked around or giving the opponent too many free base runners. Wacha’s worst outings include April 14 against Milwaukee (7 ER, 11 H), April 20 at Arizona (4 IP, 5 ER, 10 H) and September 12 at Los Angeles (4 IP, 7 ER).