Padres’ Steven Souza Jr. is betting on a subtle change that could swing everything

Six short years ago, the San Diego Padres' offense set the world on fire. In a ridiculous stretch that included an elongated winning streak and five grand slams in six games, "Slam Diego" was (re)born.

The power that fueled that historic run disappeared for large swaths of the 2025 season, as the Friars finished the year ranked 28th in total home runs and 22nd in slugging percentage. There just wasn't enough juice behind the big bats in the lineup, and the offense collapsed in the NL Wild Card Series, scoring just five runs in three games.

Recently extended general manager A.J. Preller went to work to try and fix what ailed that group. He brought in Sung-mun Song, Nick Castellanos, and Miguel Andujar to add some thump back to the lineup, plus buy-low candidates Ty France and Jose Miranda on minor-league deals.

Now, it'll be up to freshman hitting coach Steven Souza Jr. to put all the pieces in the right place. Like new manager Craig Stammen, he's got negligible coaching experience, so the Padres will have to hope his status as a recently retired player will resonate within the clubhouse.

Otherwise, Slam Diego will only fade further into the past.

Padres betting big on first-year hitting coach Steven Souza Jr.

There's no denying the talent the Friars have. Beyond just the new faces in camp, Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill, and Xander Bogaerts are established MLB stars with game-changing power in their profile. They simply need to be in the right position to succeed.

"What I am going to try and bring is controlling the zone, hammering mistakes, being able to make the pitcher do something different out there. Because when these guys put the ball on the barrel, it’s hit hard and goes a long way, typically," Souza told MLB.com's AJ Cassavell.

Though he never found long-term success in the big leagues, Souza knows his way around the batter's box. He played in 505 career games at the highest level, including more than 375 with the Tampa Bay Rays during a three-year stretch from 2015-17, when he produced 6.2 WAR. Also like Stammen, he retired in 2022, meaning he's just a few years separated from going through the daily grind of being an MLB player.

That experience should help him replace Victor Rodriguez, who left for the Houston Astros' hitting coach job this offseason. It was a bold bet by San Diego to give a pair of first-year coaches so much importance on the staff — having Ruben Niebla around certainly helps in the experience department — and Souza will need to make good on his talents in order to help turn the offense around in 2026.