Gwynn. Winfield. Hoffman. And maybe even that swinging friar? These stars always made fans yell out ‘Oh My!’ in America’s Finest City.
It’s not just those icons. San Diego has seen plenty of Padres create moments that you can hang a star on.
Manager: Bruce Bochy
Bruce Bochy is one of just two Padres’ managers to ever win the NL Manager of the Year award, and he wasn’t even honored with it in the season that he brought San Diego to the World Series. Bochy spent 12 seasons with the Padres, and is far and away the leader in games managed with 1,926 — only Bud Black, who replaced Bochy in 2007, is also over 1,000 games. Bochy was under .500 with San Diego, but everything in between the ‘98 World Series and return to the postseason in 2005 is more on the front office.
Mandatory Credit: Doug Pensinger /Allsport (via Getty Images)
Starting pitcher: Jake Peavy
Jake Peavy is the lone choice to be the Padres’ all-time starter, not due to a lack of alternatives, but because no one else was as dominant in their uniform for as long. Peavy pitched in San Diego for eight seasons that, due to a midseason call-up and midseason trade, were more like seven, but amassed 1,342 innings with a 3.29 ERA in that time. From 2004 through 2008, Peavy posted a 2.95 ERA, twice leading MLB in ERA — as well as the NL and then MLB in strikeouts — while also winning the 2007 NL Cy Young.
(Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
Reliever/closer: Trevor Hoffman
Trevor Hoffman is one of the few relievers in the Hall of Fame, and one of three Padres wearing their cap in Cooperstown. The Reds drafted him in 1989 as a shortstop, then the Marlins snagged him in the 1992 expansion draft after he’d converted to pitching— less than a year later, Hoffman had been shipped to San Diego for Gary Sheffield. Over 16 years with the Padres, he produced a 2.76 ERA and recorded 552 saves while striking out 9.7 batters per nine, all best among Padres pitchers. His 601 career saves are second-most in MLB history.
(Photo by San Diego Padres/Getty Images)
Catcher: Benito Santiago
Benito Santiago won the 1987 NL Rookie of the Year after batting .300/.324/.467 with 18 home runs in 146 games. He never got much better than that in his career, but when you start out like that, you don’t necessarily have to. Santiago would win four Silver Sluggers in his seven years in San Diego, as well as three Gold Gloves, while being named to four All-Star teams. The glove more than made up for the holes in his offensive game, and never more in his career than in San Diego, where he was his most well-rounded.
(Photo by Owen C. Shaw/Getty Images)
1B: Adrian Gonzalez
The Padres acquired Adrian Gonzalez in a lopsided 2006 trade with the Rangers. In five years with San Diego in the severely depressed offensive environment of Petco Park, Gonzalez tantalized with what his numbers could have looked like in a stadium that wasn’t actively holding him back. As is, he still managed to hit .288/.374/.514 with 161 home runs, good for a 141 OPS+, and he played Gold Glove defense while doing it. Freed from Petco by Boston in 2011, Gonzalez would lead the majors with 213 hits, and finished his career with 317 homers.
(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
2B: Jake Cronenworth
Mark Loretta put up a .314/.377/.438 line with the Padres, but that was over just three years’ time: Jake Cronenworth has hit .247/.332/.411 in a much tougher offensive environment than Loretta did, and is in his sixth year of doing it. Outside of a disappointing 2023, Cronenworth’s numbers actually lineup with Loretta’s, and he has been a valuable member of the Padres’ lineup since he debuted following a trade with the Rays, hitting well above-average at second base and just in general, while bouncing around defensively as needed between second, first base and shortstop.
(Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
3B: Manny Machado
It might be hard to believe, but Manny Machado has actually spent as much time with the Padres as he did with the Orioles — and he’s under contract with San Diego through 2033. While Petco Park holds his numbers back a bit, Machado has still batted .276/.342/.489 over six-plus seasons, with more than half of his 347 career home runs coming in a Padres’ uniform. Machado, who just turned 33, has an outside shot at joining the exceptionally elite 3,000 hits and 500 homers club, and even without reaching that level, Cooperstown isn’t out of the question.
(Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)
SS: Gary Templeton
You wouldn’t know it from the lack of Gold Gloves, but Gary Templeton was one of the finest defensive shortstops of his era. He just happened to share that era with Ozzie Smith. Templeton was tied to Smith in other ways: the two were traded for each other before the 1982 season, giving both teams their shortstop for the rest of the decade. Plus, Templeton ranks first all-time on the Padres for defensive WAR… directly ahead of Smith. While Templeton hit just .258/.312/.320 in ‘84, NL shortstops batted .242/.296/.315, and, save Smith, didn’t have his glove.
(Photo by: Rick Stewart/Getty Images)
OF: Tony Gwynn
When the Padres made the World Series in 1984, the 24-year-old Tony Gwynn led MLB in hits (213) and batting average (.351) while posting a 141 OPS+. In 1998, when the Padres made the World Series for the second time, the 38-year-old Gwynn hit .321/.364/.501, good for a 133 OPS+. How did so little change in so long a time? That was just Gwynn. In 20 years, all in San Diego, the Hall of Famer hit a combined .338/.388/.459 with eight batting titles, collecting 3,141 hits, 319 steals and 763 extra-base hits — all franchise bests.
(Photo by Sporting News via Getty Images via Getty Images)
OF: Dave Winfield
Dave Winfield played with the Yankees for longer, but he was better where his career started, so it’s not a surprise that he chose a Padres’ cap when he was bronzed for Cooperstown. In one fewer season, Winfield amassed another five WAR with San Diego, hitting .284/.357/.464 for a 134 OPS+ — the same he managed in New York in a better stadium for hitters. Despite leaving as a free agent, Winfield ranks third among Padres in hits (1,134), fifth in doubles (179) and homers (154), second in total bases (1,853) extra-base hits (372) and RBIs (626).
OF: Fernando Tatis Jr.
Fernando Tatis Jr. has played six seasons in MLB, and in that time has made multiple All-Star teams, won a Gold Glove and was awarded a pair of Silver Sluggers. He led the NL in homers with 42 in 2021 as a 22-year-old, and now, in his age-26 season, ranks sixth in the organization in long balls with 142, and fourth in WAR among position players with an even 25. He’s second in franchise history in slugging percentage (.520), and has already cracked the top-10 for steals. He’s under contract through 2024: there are plenty of chances to climb higher.
(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
DH: Ken Caminiti
While Ken Caminiti spent the bulk of his 15-year career with the Astros, his impact with the Padres was enormous. Caminiti hit .252/.353/.509 with 29 homers and 58 extra-base hits in ‘98, helping San Diego to the World Series, and across four years on the roster batted .295/.384/.540 with 121 of his 239 career homers (including another five playoff dingers for the Padres), and more than half of his career wins above replacement. He’s first in franchise history in both slugging and OPS, fourth in on-base, and 10th in home runs despite the relatively short stint.
Mandatory Credit: Jed Jacobsohn /Allsport (via Getty Images)
Honorable Mentions:
- Dick Williams (manager)
- Andy Ashby (starting pitcher)
- Kevin Brown (starting pitcher)
- Randy Jones (starting pitcher)
- Heath Bell (reliever/closer)
- Roberto Alomar (2B)
- Mark Loretta (2B)
- Bip Roberts (2B)
- Phil Nevin (3B)
- Khalil Greene (SS)
- Ozzie Smith (SS)
- Steve Finley (OF)
- Brian Giles (OF)
- Gene Richards (OF)
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
recommended
Get more from the Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
