Padres' Mike Shildt Thinks Team Could Be Unstoppable Under One Condition

San Diego Padres manager Mike Shildt believes the team could be unstoppable, under one condition — hitters have to let the game come to them.

The Padres demonstrated the potential of the team they could be in the first game of a doubleheader against the Philadelphia Phillies Wednesday. The San Diego lineup look its best, shrinking the strike zone and displaying patience at the plate.

“If we do that, this team is going to be virtually unstoppable,” Shildt said to the San Diego Union-Tribune's Kevin Acee. “It really is. We were very stingy. Weren’t going to give them anything that wasn’t on the plate. Amazing job. … If we’re stingy like that — you know there’s no, no absolute in this game, but if you do that with the talent we have in the zone, then we’re going to be a very dangerous team. … We’ve done it. Listen, the game can be challenging when guys are painting on both sides of the plate and they’re a little bit off of it. (Hitters) can tend to expand. But we got back being stubborn today.”

The Friars currently hold the final National League Wild Card spot, with the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants not far behind. The Los Angeles Dodgers lead the division by 8.5 games, but Manny Machado believes the San Diego squad is slowly starting to heat back up again in baseball's best division.

“I think we’ve got some good things coming,” Machado said. “We’ve made some adjustments as a group. Really looking forward to those adjustments and seeing how we’re going to go. I think guys are starting to get back on their plan. I think it’s going to be fun when we start rolling again.”

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