Josh Hader won't hold it against Padres fans 'if they think it reflects on me' – San Diego Union-Tribune

Jake Cronenworth was just the tip of the iceberg. But at the end of the 2022 NLDS, it was Josh Hader who silenced the Dragon's last gasps – Mookie Betts, Trea Turner and Freddie Freeman, all by punchout – and secured the Padres' first National League Championship Series appearance since 1998.

However, the 30-year-old Astros closer suspects that might not be his top priority if he gets the chance to pitch out of the Petco Park bullpen this week.

“Obviously, a lot of people think that year '23, when I didn't play multiple innings, clouded their view of me and the hard work,” Hader said Monday afternoon in front of his locker in the visitors' clubhouse. “But at the end of the day, I gave everything I had and gave the team every effort I could to put us in a position to make the playoffs.”

“But again, it's a team sport. So at the end of the day, if they think it's going to reflect on me, then so be it.”

The deficiencies of the most expensive roster in franchise history are not solely Hader's fault.

The team went 9-23 in one-point games, lost its first 12 games in extra innings, and finished the season two games out of the NL's final wild-card spot.

Fernando Tatis Jr. missed the first 20 games of the season to serve the remainder of his steroid suspension and was unproductive for much of the season. Manny Machado's elbow began to hurt toward the end of the year. The days when more than one hitter was on par with Juan Soto (35 HRs, 109 RBIs, .930 OPS) were far too rare for a team with a payroll of over $282 million.

Nevertheless, it was Hader's efforts that came under fire when he was unavailable as a pitcher in the eighth inning of a 1-0 game in San Francisco in late September.

Robert Suarez got the last out in the seventh inning, caused traffic in the eighth, and then had to get himself out of trouble because Hader, who had his eye on free agency, had set strict limits on his use after being blindsided by the Brewers in arbitration before the 2020 season.

Suarez did not do so and Hader subsequently had to explain his absence to reporters in a 2-1 defeat.

“Are we in the race for the playoffs?” Hader asked at the time.

Yes, they were – even if only mathematically.

“You want me to do everything,” Hader replied.

Hader's usage has been an issue all season. Suarez spent much of the season on the injured list and the Padres struggled to provide leadership to their closer, in part because he was unavailable to fill in in a shorthanded bullpen.

Among the limitations is that Hader did not pitch more than one inning all season, which was his specialty as he became one of the game's best left-handed relievers. He also shied away from pitching more than two days in a row, doing so only once for the Padres in 2023.

Hader said the Padres were informed of the rules, which his former agent discussed at length with ESPN in April, and that they were the antidote to the Brewers, who, as a small-time player, took advantage of the fact that arbitration valued saves far more lucrative than his Swiss Army knife use as an all-time weapon over multiple innings.

Hader asked for $6.5 million after earning $688,000 in 2019. The Brewers offered $4.1 million. And the system was on the Brewers' side, as Hader had only 49 saves in three years despite 349 strikeouts in 204⅔ innings (2.42 ERA).

So Hader developed a plan to ensure his left arm was in one piece when he hit the open market after the 2023 season.

The Padres, like the Brewers, are aware of what that means, Hader said Monday. The fact that they avoided arbitration before the 2023 season with a salary of $14.1 million – a record for a reliever – had no impact on how he would be used in his final year.

“It's more of a long-term investment,” Hader said. “If I get hurt one year, you just throw the guy away. I mean, you see that a lot with relievers. You know, guys get hurt. Next year they're looking for a job and they can't get in because they're trying to get healthy. So, ultimately, the deal goes both ways.”

Hader said the Padres had announced they would be looking for a multi-year deal for the 2023 season, but no offer surfaced. That clearly would have made all the difference, as Hader has recorded at least four outs in five appearances while adjusting to the five-year, $95 million deal he signed with the Astros before this season.

“The Astros invested in me,” Hader said.

As for his reception at Petco Park this week — icy as it may be — it won't affect how he feels about his time with the Padres.

“I've always appreciated those fans for how they've come out every day,” Hader said. “Whatever they think of me, I mean, they can have it, right? I think at the end of the day, we made great memories. We beat a team (in 2022) that a lot of people didn't think we were going to beat. We came really far in the (postseason). Obviously, we didn't make it to the World Series like we planned. But you know, that's baseball, it's going to happen.

“Personally, I did my best.”

Originally published: September 16, 2024 at 18:04