3 San Diego Padres players who exceeded expectations in June

The San Diego Padres had a streaky month with an up-and-down offense and the temporary loss of slugger Manny Machado. Despite the struggles, a few players were able to prove themselves and impact the Padres’ lineup more than ever.

The Friars have an extremely high chance of making the playoffs (90.8 percent, according to FanGraphs). Despite being so likely to go to the playoffs, they have the 13th-highest strikeout rate among the entire league and seventh-lowest isolated power.

Machado brought, significantly, the most power to the lineup. Expectations weren’t quite as high for anyone else in San Diego, but these players still managed to stand out above what was expected of them.

San Diego Padres outfielder Jurickson Profar

Padres’ outfielder Jurickson Profar didn’t start the season well. In April, he was hitting .186/.318/.457 and by June, he significantly increased most of his numbers. In June, he hit .276/.369/.419.

He also didn’t have a great season in 2021, so expectations weren’t overly high for him coming into 2022. Last season, his isolated power was a low .093. This season, he’s nearly doubled it to .160.

He hits with the most power among all Padres outfielders and is now one of the best hitters on the entire team. He has the third-highest batting average and slugging percentage, as well as the second-highest on-base percentage.

He’s tied with Jake Cronenworth for the most runs produced this season (49), nearly half of which were in June. He certainly heated up in June and will likely continue to in July.

San Diego Padres catcher Austin Nola

Padres catcher Austin Nola improved his hitting quite a bit since the beginning of the season. In April, he was hitting .153/.274/.250. In June, that’s increased to .230/.320/.379.

Last season, his isolated power was .104. This season, it’s down to .074, a noticeable drop-off. However, the significant increase in his slugging percentage, in particular, seems to be promising for an increase in power.

He’s also been the key factor in team victories, most notably a 1-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on June 24. He drove in the only run that game, and the Padres had their only win of the four-game series.

He’s far from having a breakout season. However, he didn’t appear to offer much potential coming into this season and has come along far in June. He’s undoubtedly proved he’s capable of more than he showed in the early season.