5 San Diego Padres players who have been major disappointments this season

2) Jake Cronenworth has been a major disappointment for the 2023 San Diego Padres

Another player who hasn't gotten right this season for the Padres is Jake Cronenworth.

Like Machado, Cronenworth inked a long-term deal with San Diego last winter, and it hasn't paid dividends with a .689 OPS (92 OPS+), along with just 10 home runs in 2023.

Cronenworth's saving grace is his versatility, which makes him a capable defender at multiple positions across the diamond. But he's been mostly relegated to first base this season because the Padres simply haven't found consistency at the position. This primary move to first has also lessened Cronenworth's value.

After back-to-back All-Star appearances in 2021 and 2022, while posting consecutive 4+ bWAR seasons, the veteran utility man has regressed to just a 1.2 bWAR in 2023 and that's simply not good enough. Not for someone earning the money San Diego is paying him.

3) Joe Musgrove has been a major disappointment for the 2023 San Diego Padres

Widely considered to be the ace of the San Diego Padres' rotation, righty Joe Musgrove hasn't seen the mound much in 2023.

In just 17 starts this season, Musgrove has been solid, pitching to a 3.05 ERA and striking out 97 batters in 97.1 innings pitched. But need we say it again? Just 17 starts in 2023.

Musgrove has spent the bulk of this season on the injured list, an unfortunate development after a strong 2022 postseason in which he played a major role in getting the Padres to the NLCS. His return to the rotation in 2023 appears uncertain at best, and that's a major disappointment.

Injuries haven't typically been the big righty's calling card since arriving in San Diego; he made a combined 61 regular season starts in 2021 and 2022 (average of 30.5 starts per season). However, that number has been cut nearly in half in 2023, and it's evident that the Padres miss Musgrove's presence on the mound as a stabilizing, if not dominant force within their starting staff.

4) Rich Hill has been a major disappointment for the 2023 San Diego Padres

When the San Diego Padres made a move to acquire lefty Rich Hill and first baseman Ji Man Choi from the Pittsburgh Pirates at the 2023 MLB trade deadline, they certainly didn't envision such lackluster play from their summer reinforcements. But we're calling this trade what it appears to be at this moment: a disaster.

Let's focus specifically on Rich Hill, the crafty elder statesman of baseball who has revived his career on the basis of deception and soft contact. Since arriving in San Diego, the 43-year-old has pitched to a ghastly 10.71 ERA in five starts. That won't cut it anywhere, not even on a team as bad as the Kansas City Royals or the Oakland A's, let alone the Padres.

We knew GM A.J. Preller wasn't going to punt on the 2023 season; it's not in his DNA to do so. But not even he could've predicted such a rapid decline from Hill, who had otherwise been solid with the Pirates. It is what it is now, though, and the Padres will have to accept the failure of this deal with Pittsburgh.

5) Yu Darvish has been a major disappointment for the 2023 San Diego Padres

Much of a baseball team's chances of making the playoffs hinges on the succes of its pitching staff. So when a third starter is being included on this list, that's not a good thing for the San Diego Padres.

Yu Darvish has been a shell of himself in 2023, with a 4.56 ERA in 24 starts. Though he's still striking hitters out (141 Ks in 136.1 innings pitched), his WHIP of nearly 1.30 would be his highest since 2018.

Signed to a six-year extension last winter at age 36, Darvish's new deal will take him all the way until his age 42 season. And for a starter who is already exhibiting signs of decline, that's ... not great for the Padres.

The good news? Darvish has been healthy, which is more than Joe Musgrove, Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo can all say they've been in 2023 (each has dealt with injuries).

Unfortunately, that's a pretty low standard to clear given that we measure results and performance with more emphasis. And in those latter two areas, Darvish has fallen short of expectations this season.