Quote from Lance Richardson on December 8, 2021, 7:03 pm

I already named mu "All Character" Team.  This one is a team of my personal favorites, combining performance with my own personal experience.

C- Terry Kennedy.  He has a reasonable argument as the club's greatest catcher, but no matter.  He was behind the plate in 1984, when a certain 15-year-old life-long Friar fanatic hitched a ride with that wonderful team.

1B- Steve Garvey.  I would go with the Crime Dog, but I was in the stands when Garv hit the dinger that we'll never forget, giving our Pads another day to take down the Cubs and advance to the 1984 World Series.  I thought the stadium might crumble, such was the noise and energy.

2B- Bip Roberts.  Just a fantastic player.  Nobody knew it at the time, but he was, for a few years, one of the most valuable players on the game.

SS- Ozzie Smith.  The Baseball Jesus (Tatis) is like nothing we've ever seen, and is a FAR better baseball player than the Wizard was.  But as a nine-year-old kid watching Ozzie.... I'll never forget that magic. And we've never seen anything like him, either.  He's the greatest defensive player of all time, regardless of position.  He signed numerous autographs for me, too, and always with a smile.

3B- Ken Caminiti.  Universally respected by teammates, and loved by fans.  Nothing can ever sully this man's legacy in my mind.

LF- Dave Winfield.  Yeah, I know.  But I cannot leave him or Tony off the team, and big Dave did, in fact, play a bit in left field for us.  He was my childhood hero, so he was gonna be here even if it meant leaving off Mr. Padre.

CF- Steve Finley.  Another '98 Padre, and the best centerfielder we've had.

RF- Tony Gwynn.  My dad and I sat behind the cage at the club's Yuma spring training facility in 1982.  We had seen Tony run the point for the Aztecs basketball team at Peterson gym, but we'd never seen him hit.  I was thirteen years old.  We watched Gwynn hit for less than five minutes before I told my dad, "This guy is like Rod Carew... he's gonna win batting titles."   Hey Dad... I told you so.

RHSP- Kevin Brown.  Hat tip to Gaylord Parry and Jake Perry, but Brown was devastating for us.

LHSP- Randy Jones.  I paid fifty cents for a 1976 Topps card of Randy in 1977.  I was seven years old, and that was a lot of mony to me.  Still have the card.

RHRP-  Rollie Fingers.  Trevor is my guy, but I was soo damned excited when we singed Rollie.

LHRP- Mark Davis.  His glory was short-lived, but it was astonishing to behold.

 

 

Quote from WindsorUK on December 9, 2021, 12:32 am

Cool stories, guys!

Keep 'em coming.

I'm not sure if I shared this before.....so...buddy and I got dropped off by our parents about 2 hours before game time( we were Jr. Padres).Stadium was empty except for this crack, crack, crack!!!

My buddy and I made our way to the field to check out where the noise was coming from....and it was from a newly drafted Tony Gwynn taking BP.

After his session, he made his out through the Loge level, just passed us.

We had obviously seen TG play at Peterson gym with the Aztecs but we were star struck!

 

Quote from BoosterSD on December 9, 2021, 6:35 am

Quote from Lance Richardson on December 8, 2021, 7:03 pm

I already named mu "All Character" Team.  This one is a team of my personal favorites, combining performance with my own personal experience.

C- Terry Kennedy.  He has a reasonable argument as the club's greatest catcher, but no matter.  He was behind the plate in 1984, when a certain 15-year-old life-long Friar fanatic hitched a ride with that wonderful team.

 

I was 13 when these games took place, and I too, was hooked. Had never really watched baseball before, but have watched or listened to as many games as I can since that post season.

Quote from dusty on December 10, 2021, 7:19 pm

Been awhile since I commented but here I go!

C…Benito for sure #2 probably Ramon Hernandez

1B…This one was tough I think Wally takes it for me and then Fred McGriff

2B would have to go to either Loretta or Cronenworth

3B (Only position I’m mentioning 3 players) Caminiti anytime you have a player you try to emulate his stance in little league, you know he is an all time fave. Manny a close second and then Sheffield right in there as well

SS Tatis 1 and Khalil easily #2

RF Mr Padre

CF Finley

LF Greg Vaughn and I was a huge Rondell White fan

OF: I am reserving a fourth outfield position for two players that played everywhere who I loved: Eric Owens and Wil Venable

LSP: Hitchcock, Luebke

RSP: Peavy, Musgrove

RP: Hoffman, Otsuka

 

Quote from Jeremy Hill on December 11, 2021, 11:08 am

I think I'm a little bit younger than most of you guys. The first team I really remember was the 98 squad and I was only 8 years old then.

C- I'm honestly struggling to come up with a catcher I really liked in my time as a Padres fan. I've got a soft spot for Carlos Hernandez just for being on the 98 team, but he honestly wasn't very good. A broken down Piazza might be the best I can come up with.

1B- It's Adrian with a shout-out to Wally for me. Adrian was obviously a great hitter, but the way he impacted the game with his arm so often is what really stands out in my memory.

2B- It has to be Loretta. His 2004 season was incredible.

SS- Has to be Fernando for me. I loved Khalil too, but Tatis is on a different level. Just knowing we have him long term gives me hope

3B- 8 year old me thought Ken Caminiti was the coolest mofo on the planet. He was the reason I played 3b as a kid.

LF- It has to be Greg Vaughn. I think I'll forever be able to picture towels waving in Vaughn's Valley in my head.

CF- I loved Mark Kotsay and Mike Cameron. I should mention Finley too, but I feel like my memory of what he was in 98 is greater than what he actually was.

RF- Tony was and still is one of my heroes.

SP- It's Peavy for me. I loved everything about the way he pitched. The 98 staff was awesome too though, especially Brown and Ashby.

RP- It's obviously Trevor, but guys like Heath Bell, Mike Adams, Scott Linebrink, Aki, and 2003 Rod Beck standout in my memory as well.

PH- Jim Leyritz just seemed to come up clutch for us off the bench over and over again in 98.

Quote from WindsorUK on December 11, 2021, 12:17 pm

Okay, I'd be remiss if I didn't add at least one more name to my favourite Padres list.

And whilst I realize he wasn't a player, he was there from my earliest memories of Padre games.

I am of course speaking of the greatest mascot in the storied annals of professional sports ALL around the world! The one and only Chicken!

I had KGB chicken t-shirts as a kid and when he was re-hatched in 1979,  I was there when the Brinx truck brought him in!

I still see clips of him on YouTube and am just as happy.

Often forgotten when talking about great SD sports figures but The Chicken is certainly near the top of my list.

Quote from BoosterSD on December 11, 2021, 12:27 pm

Quote from Jeremy Hill on December 11, 2021, 11:08 am

I think I'm a little bit younger than most of you guys. The first team I really remember was the 98 squad and I was only 8 years old then.

CF- I loved Mark Kotsay and Mike Cameron. I should mention Finley too, but I feel like my memory of what he was in 98 is greater than what he actually was.

You're right, his numbers were much better in 96 and 97, but his defense was still there and so vital in 98!

Quote from MrPadre19 on December 11, 2021, 5:48 pm

Quote from WindsorUK on December 11, 2021, 12:17 pm

Okay, I'd be remiss if I didn't add at least one more name to my favourite Padres list.

And whilst I realize he wasn't a player, he was there from my earliest memories of Padre games.

I am of course speaking of the greatest mascot in the storied annals of professional sports ALL around the world! The one and only Chicken!

I had KGB chicken t-shirts as a kid and when he was re-hatched in 1979,  I was there when the Brinx truck brought him in!

I still see clips of him on YouTube and am just as happy.

Often forgotten when talking about great SD sports figures but The Chicken is certainly near the top of my list.

I was at that game also.

I stood in line to introduce my boys to the Chicken at a Minor League game in Jacksonville about 10-12 years ago and told him about being there

Of course he won’t speak but he seemed pretty excited to hear from on old fogey that was there that day.

Miss that guy.

 

 

Quote from brent wolff on January 9, 2022, 7:37 pm

Been a Padres fan since the mid-70s, even though I lived nowhere near San Diego.  I actually grew up in St. Louis Cardinals territory as a kid and then moved to Cubs territory for my adult life.

I remember when all of my Cardinal fan buddies were so mad when the Cards traded Garry Templeton for Ozzie Smith.  I told them they got the better end of the deal at the time, it took a little while, but they all eventually saw the light.

C -- this is a tough one, Santiago's '87 rookie season was amazing, however, I going with Terry Kennedy edging out Gene Tenace (no one has mentioned him yet).  This seems like the weakest position by far throughout Padres history.

1B -- I'm going with Nate Colbert (he hasn't even gotten a mention yet, anyone recall his 5 HR & 13 RBI doubleheader in ATL, plus he mashed 38 HRs in the original Jack Murphy stadium, before they put up the interior fences, he would have easily had over 50 HRs that year), still the Padres all-time HR leader (with a whopping total of 163, which is amazing low, but will belong to Tatis, Jr. soon enough as he already has 81 at age 23, Machado will probably as beat this mark in SD).  Colbert just edges out the Crime Dog, who I really liked, and Gonzo and his great '09 season.

2B --   I'm going to take Cronenworth, he is such a great fielder and clutch hitter.  He edges out Alan Wiggins, the speedy catalyst from the '84  season that succumbed to drugs, Robbie Alomar and his exciting beginning seasons, hated that we traded him to Toronto (even though we got McGriff), Loretta and his terrific '04 season, the Bipster, Q Veras, and a couple of players that I just loved their names of Tito Fuentes and Juan Bonilla, even though they were just another guy types.

SS -- Tatis, Jr., as he appears to be a generational talent.  He edges out Ozzie, even though the Wizard of Oz was only a defensive and stolen base guy as a Pad, his BA didn't become respectable until after he had been in St. Lou for a few seasons.  Ozzie was one of the main reasons I became a Pads fan.  Kahil Greene had a couple of really solid seasons as well.

3B -- Cammy, even though he was roided up, who can forget his '96 unanimous MVP season.  Also loved Sheffield, Nevin had several very good seasons, plus Manny, who might eventually pass up Cammy, if he stays and produces long enough.

LF -- Going to place Winfield here, he was one of the main reasons I became a Pads fan.  Greg Vaughn's 50-homer '98 season was awesome and memorable, Klesko had has some fine seasons, plus the vastly underrated Gene Richards.

CF -- Have to take Steve Finley as he is a Southern Illinois-Carbondale alum (as I am).  Also really loved Jerry Mumphrey, even though he only played 1 season, hitting .298 with 59 ribbies and stealing 52 bags.  Kevin McReynolds was solid for the mid-80s teams.

RF -- Tony Gwynn, the beloved Mr. Padre, enough said.

RH Starter -- Jake Peavy (who won the Cy Young and pitching triple crown in '07) edges out Kevin Brown and his wonderful '98 season (his one and only Padres season and that cost us 1B Derek Lee) and Gaylord Perry's '78 Cy Young season (his gyrations prior to each pitcher would just psyche out hitters speculating that a spitball was coming each pitch).  Andy Benes was solid for several seasons, but never had a great season or career overall.  Maybe Musgrove can enter the conversation after a few more solid seasons in SD.

LH Starter -- Randy Jones, another reason I became a Pads fan, a true pitcher, not just a thrower.  Sterling Hitchcock was a playoff hero in '98.  Hopefully Snell can also eventually join this conversation.  I loved Tim Lollar in '84 and I believe he hit a handful of HRs that season also.

RP -- Have to go with Hoffy, even over Fingers (back in the days RP would pitch 2 or 3 inning saves), the Goose, Mark Davis  and his magical '89 Cy Young season, Heath Bell, Brad Hand and Kirby Yates (the one position of continued strength throughout most of Padres history).

Manager -- no one has mentioned, but it has to be Bochy.  I actually like Trader Jack McKeon as a manager better than as a GM.  Also, like Dick Williams in '84.

GM -- no one has mentioned either, tough call, but I'll select Towers over McKeon, hopefully Preller will pass both of them up soon.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some players I really liked, but this the best I can remember as of now from a nearly 50 year Pads fan.