San Diego is "a great place to be" for closer Josh Hader as he enters his final season

Josh Hader and the San Diego Padres are being touted as the most exciting team in baseball this season. Their combination of an energetic young core coupled with some skilled veterans has many believing they could win their division for the first time since 2006.

The team pressed all the way to the NLCS last season, where they eventually lost to the New York Mets. The team notably eliminated the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team that has dominated the NL West for a decade, out of the postseason in the 2022 NLDS.

The team has also made some big offseason moves. Shortstop Xander Bogaerts inked an 11-year deal worth $280 million with the Padres. They also retained MVP runner-up Manny Machado with a recent $350 million contract.

Two recent arrivals that exemplify the skills of the Padres are outfielder Juan Soto and pitcher Josh Hader. Both were traded to the San Diego Padres last season. Hader came from the Milwaukee Brewers and Soto from the Washington Nationals.

"Amazing Padres will try to extend Soto and Hader next. Here’s reax from both stars plus Soto agent Scott Boras, who praises the Pads for trying to go long with a 4th positional superstar to assemble what he called 'Mt. Crushmore.'” - Jon Heyman

Josh Hader is closer and has formerly led the league in saves. A strikeout machine, Hader set an MLB record as the fastest pitcher to reach 400 strikeouts, doing so in only 234 2/3 innings.

Hader signed a $14.1 million contract for the 2023 season with the San Diego Padres. Along with Juan Soto, they are both up for contract extensions. In a recent piece for the New York Post, writer Jon Heyman profiled the two stars.

"SERIES TIED. Josh Hader shuts the door" - FOX Sports: MLB

Speaking about the pressure that he is under to perform in such a pivotal contract year, Josh Hader offered a succinct answer about how he feels playing for the San Diego Padres:

“It’s a great place to be, but at the end of the day business is business,”

Josh Hader's 2023 season will dictate his future offers

Hader reached a career-high 36 saves last season. As such, he is emerging as one of the premier closing arms in the MLB. If he can prove that he has the ability to keep up with strikeout-dominant pitching style, he will have plenty of offers next season.