San Diego Padres retired numbers

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Numbers retired by the Padres displayed in Ring of Honor above the press box at Petco Park during the 2016 season

The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team in Major League Baseball (MLB) based in San Diego, California. The club was founded in 1969 as part of the league's expansion. MLB clubs have retired various uniform numbers, ensuring that those numbers are never worn within the respective clubs in honor of a particular player or manager of note. The Padres no longer issue six numbers that have been retired. The numbers are commemorated at the team's home stadium at Petco Park in a display at the park entrance as well as in the Ring of Honor.

Steve Garvey was the first player to have his number retired by the Padres in 1988. The first baseman had retired during the offseason, and his No. 6 was being worn by Keith Moreland, who switched to No. 7 after presenting Garvey with a framed Padres No. 6 jersey during a pregame ceremony.[1] Garvey played only five seasons with San Diego, but hit the game-winning two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning against Lee Smith of the Chicago Cubs in Game 4 of the 1984 National League Championship Series (NLCS), tying the series before the Padres won the next day.[1][2][3] He was named the NLCS Most Valuable Player, and San Diego advanced to their first World Series.[4] In 2016, The San Diego Union-Tribune ranked Garvey's Game 4 homer as the No. 1 moment in San Diego sports history.[5] However, he played 14 of his 19 seasons with the rival Los Angeles Dodgers,[5] where he was also more productive, and the retirement of his number by San Diego has been heavily debated.[6][7][8]

Tony Gwynn's No. 19 displayed at Petco Park

On April 15, 1997, exactly 50 years after Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color line, the No. 42 he wore with the Brooklyn Dodgers was retired throughout major league baseball.[4][9] Later that year, Randy Jones's No. 35 was retired by the Padres. He was a two-time All-Star in 1975 and 1976, when he was named the NL Comeback Player of the Year a year before becoming the club's first Cy Young Award winner in 1976.[10] On the day his number was retired, the Union-Tribune wrote that Jones was "the most popular athlete in the history of this city" during the mid-1970s until his career was derailed by a severed nerve in his left arm.[11] His starts at home would spike attendance by the thousands, and the crowd began a tradition on Opening Day in 1976 of greeting him with a pregame ovation.[12][13]

Dave Winfield was next to have his No. 31 retired in 2001, when he was also inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. His retirement ceremony also celebrated his decision to be the first member of the Hall of Fame to have his plaque depicted with him wearing a Padres cap. Winfield played for six teams in his 22-year career, spending his first eight seasons in San Diego followed by eight with the New York Yankees.[14][15] In 2004, the Padres retired No. 19 in honor of Tony Gwynn, who is widely considered the greatest Padres player ever.[16][17] He played his entire 20-year career with San Diego and won an NL-record eight batting titles.[16] The most recent number to be retired was Trevor Hoffman's No. 51 in 2011. He had retired from playing after 2010, when he left the game as MLB's career leader in saves with 601, including 552 with the Padres.[18]

Retired numbers were displayed atop the batter's eye at Petco Park until 2016

The Padres' retired numbers are displayed at Petco Park at Home Plate Plaza. Fans are allowed to pose for pictures next to the aluminum numbers, which are 3 feet 11 inches (1.19 m) high, 5+1⁄3 feet (1.6 m) wide, and 1 foot (0.30 m) deep.[19][20] Originally, the numbers were atop the batter's eye in center field, until they were relocated in 2016.[19][21] The numbers were not ready for display in time for the park's opening in 2004,[22] but they were unveiled midseason.[a] Also beginning in 2016, the numbers are displayed in the Ring of Honor on the upper deck façade above the press box behind home plate.[19][23]

Prior to moving to Petco, the team played at Qualcomm Stadium, where the retired numbers were originally displayed on banners hanging from the light towers above the left field stands.[24][25] However, Garvey's number was commemorated instead on the wall behind the spot in right-center field where his legendary winning home run in the 1984 NLCS cleared the fence, but the number disappeared when the stadium was expanded in 1997 and the location was masked by an overhang.[4][25][26] It reappeared in 2002 when all the retired numbers were moved and inscribed on the outfield fence.[25]

Retired numbers[]

Dave Winfield was the first player inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a Padre
Trevor Hoffman was the most recent Padre to have his number retired
Key
No. Retired number
Player Name of player honored
Position Player position
Career Years played with Padres
Retired Date number was retired
* Member of Baseball Hall of Fame
San Diego Padres retired numbers
No. Player Position Career Retired Ref
6 Steve Garvey 1B 1983–1987 April 16, 1988 [9]
19 Tony Gwynn* RF 1982–2001 September 4, 2004 [9]
31 Dave Winfield* RF 1973–1980 April 14, 2001 [15]
35 Randy Jones P 1973–1980 May 9, 1997 [9]
51 Trevor Hoffman* RP 1993–2008 August 21, 2011 [9]
42† Jackie Robinson* 2B N/A April 15, 1997 [9]

† Number retired by Major League Baseball

See also[]

Notes[]

  1. ^ Robinson's number was unveiled on July 3, while those of Winfield, Jones and Garvey were unveiled on August 20.[16]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Wolf, Bob (April 17, 1988). "Moreland Gives Garvey Shirt Off Back, Which Then Allows Padres to Retire It". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  2. ^ Norcross, Don (April 12, 2012). "Garvey's No. 6 should be unretired". U-T San Diego. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  3. ^ Pahigian, Josh; O'Connell, Kevin (2012). The Ultimate Baseball Road Trip, 2nd: A Fan's Guide to Major League Stadiums. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 389. ISBN 9780762783915. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Padres Retired Numbers". Padres.com. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Miller, Bryce (December 25, 2016). "Garvey's sweet swing delivers No. 1 moment in San Diego sports history". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on December 27, 2016.
  6. ^ Sanders, Jeff (April 23, 2015). "Friar talk: The Padres' Franchise Four". U-T San Diego. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  7. ^ Sullivan, Paul (April 30, 1989). "National League". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  8. ^ "Uniform facts & figures". ESPN.com. March 2, 2003. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f "Dressed to the Nines". National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  10. ^ Lin, Dennis (April 21, 2014). "Randy Jones put Padres on the map". U-T San Diego. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  11. ^ Canepa, Nick (May 9, 1997). "Randy Jones cast his spell on bats, city". The San Diego Union-Tribune. p. D-1.
  12. ^ Center, Bill (August 3, 2006). "Padres to honor Jones today with 1976 retro day". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015.
  13. ^ DiGiovanna, Mike (March 4, 1985). "Former Padre Ace Randy Jones Changes Suits but Still Has a Good Pitch". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015.
  14. ^ "Dave Winfield's Jersey Retired; Will Go Into Hall Of Fame As A Padre". Jet. 99 (20): 52–3. April 30, 2001. ISSN 0021-5996. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b Chass, Murray (April 14, 2001). "Winfield Chooses Padres Over Yanks". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Padres to retire Tony Gwynn's No. 19" (Press release). San Diego Padres. August 27, 2004. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  17. ^ Bostrom, Don (December 25, 2006). "Two for the Hall". The Morning Call. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014.
  18. ^ Wilson, Bernie (August 21, 2011). "Padres retire Trevor Hoffman's No. 51". USA Today. Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015.
  19. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Padres retired numbers moving, but not retiring". padres.mlblogs.com. March 17, 2016. Archived from the original on June 26, 2016.
  20. ^ Kenney, Kirk (April 4, 2016). "Padres fans strike a pose with retired numbers". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on June 26, 2016.
  21. ^ Singer, Tom (August 21, 2011). "In stirring ceremony, Hoffman's No. 51 retired". MLB.com. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015.
  22. ^ Sullivan, Time (April 4, 2004). "Padres step into future, but shouldn't forget past". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015.
  23. ^ Sanders, Jeff (April 1, 2016). "What's new at Petco Park". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on June 26, 2016.
  24. ^ O'Neill, Shaun (April 15, 2001). "Banner night for Padres". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015.
  25. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Padres 2, Cubs 1". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Associated Press. May 1, 2002. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011.
  26. ^ Center, Bill (August 21, 2004). "On deck: Marlins (60-60) at Padres (65-56), 7:05 tonight". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on April 30, 2015.
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