Padres fans over the last few years have multiplied significantly. Partly due to the Chargers leaving San Diego, but mostly because of their playoff success in recent years. They entered the 2024 playoff season on October 1st with one prize in mind: winning the World Series.

The Padres hadn’t appeared in the playoffs for almost 15 years when they made it to the 2020 playoffs. In 2020, they won their Wild Card series against the Cardinals, before falling to the Dodgers in the Division series. In 2022, they beat the Mets in the Wild Card Series, beat the Dodgers in the division series, and lost to the Phillies in the Championship series. 

Coming off a couple of years of early playoff success, the Padres were extremely hopeful for their 2024 playoff run. They struggled mid-season to maintain above .500, but once they did, they were on a roll. They had to play in a wild-card game in the first round of playoffs since the Dodgers had clinched the division. In a best-of-three series, the Padres took down the Atlanta Braves with a nail-biting second game, sending them to the division series against the Dodgers. As the Padres prepared to face the Dodgers, San Diego was hopeful that they could win the series since they were 1-1 with them in the regular season.

The Dodgers – Padres series took place from October 5th through October 11th. The Padres traveled up to Los Angeles to play in a tough atmosphere for the first two games since they had the home advantage. In the first game, the Padres went up 3-0 early in the game, but couldn’t hold off Ohtani who helped make the final score 7-5 in favor of the Dodgers. Looking for revenge on the second night, the Padres had a home run night, winning with a high score of 10-2. Distracting Dodgers fans at game two were no match for the Padres.

The night two win gave them confidence as they traveled back to San Diego for the next two games in the series. As fans filled downtown San Diego, the energy was high, and fans hoped to go up 2-1 in the series. In game 3, the Dodgers gave the Padres a run for money with a grand slam by Hernandez. The Padres were able to rally and come out on top winning 6-5 and took the lead in the series.

The next night did not go their way, however. The Dodgers started very strong, and the Padres had no chance to respond. They won 8-0, forcing a fifth game, and a trip back to L.A. English teacher Ms. Gonzales attended the game and was hoping for a Padres win so they could clinch the series, and so she could be in the Padres stadium to celebrate. She explained that the Padres fans were energetic throughout game 4 despite losing and that they had faith that the Padres could go and win in L.A. She said, “Both teams are very strong, so I knew the fifth game was going to be tough.”

This tie-breaking game between the Padres and Dodgers was the most anticipated game of the season. Padres fans across San Diego hoped and prayed that they could get a win to continue their playoff run, and seal the deal. In game 5, Hernandez and the Dodgers took an early lead of 2-0. The Padres fought tough throughout the rest of the game but were held scoreless. Padres fans were heartbroken that night, in disbelief that their season had come to an end.

After the loss, the Padres gathered in the bullpen to watch the Dodgers celebrate, as they prepared to head home with their season ended. What upset them the most was that they just had to win one more game and had two chances, but were unable to score in either of those games, allowing the Dodgers to steal the games away from them.

The players felt a special connection to each other this year and hated to see it come to an end. Second baseman Jake Cronenworth explained, “It’s the closest thing to a family outside of our own. I think that’s why it hurts so bad.”

Rookie Jackson Merrill was especially sad because it was his first season with the Padres. He felt like he had found his spot on the team and a true passion for baseball this past season. He explains his season saying, “I think I found a deeper love for baseball. I didn’t know the extent of how nice it can be and how much of a family you can build through an entire summer.” Merrill had the best season by a rookie in Padres history this year and is a contender for MVP of the National League. 

Despite Merrill’s success, the Padres still came up short this year and remain one of the only teams in MLB history to never win a World Series. The Friar Faithful will have to wait and see next season if that can change.