The Countdown is Very Much On
Hi from San Marcos. The next newsletter will very likely start with “Hi from Peoria,” which means the real fun is about to begin.
Pitchers and catchers officially report on Sunday and I’ll make my way to the desert shortly thereafter, spending about a week getting ready before the first Cactus League game on 2/22.
It’s a most magical time of the year and I hope to see many of you out there.
As for today’s newsletter, there’s some great nostalgia, some very modern hats, plus good stuff on video games, biomechanics and a wonderful group of supporters. Hope you read on and enjoy!
Treasure Trove of Old Padres Goodies
Shoutout to Instagram user juiice619 who shared some incredible old Padres stuff he recently unearthed. Let’s start with an absolute gem, a 1989 Spring Training supplement put out by the Yuma Daily Sun:
So much to love here, but maybe my favorite part is…that’s definitely supposed to be Bevacqua right? Kurt, I am pretty sure you subscribe; wondering if you’ve ever seen this before or if you think it looks as much like you as I think you do? The fun part about that, of course, is that KB’s last year was 1985. Either way, what a gem.
Next up, front page of the Union-Tribune sports section from August of 1993 after Tony Gwynn collected his 2,000th career hit:
Great headline, great picture, great day for San Diego. And a bonus recap of Steffi Graff taking Mary Pierce out in the quarters of the Mazda Tennis Classic at La Costa.
Might have saved the best for last1.
Shot:
Chaser (from inside that beauty):
Love you, Mudcat.
Thanks again to juiice for sharing.
Great Way to Get in the Mood
With pitchers and catchers officially reporting this coming Sunday, what better way to get the mind right than to check out the new batch of Spring Training hats released by MLB and New Era.
Obviously the first thing we’re going to notice is GOLD. Since the return to brown before the 2020 season, this is the first time we’ve seen an official and on-field hat dominated by the “secondary” color of the team’s identity.
I love it.
As with all these things, the true test will be how it looks on the field, but the reality is, the Spring Training hats (to me, at least) are a kind of low-stakes way of experimenting a little bit and so I like when the designs skew a bit wonky either in terms of color or logo choice.
One interesting note, which was passed along in a typically thorough breakdown of the release from my buddy Chris Creamer, is that these specific hats will be used only in Spring Training, and not for batting practice during the regular season, which has been the norm for quite some time now. Definitely check that link out if you’re interested in more great info on the program.
Also from Chris, here’s a tidy look at all 30 teams’ hats for this exhibition season:
As you can see, the bright color thing is not unique to the Padres…MLB and New Era said they really want to lean into the “Spring Break, youthful audience and young players” thing and they certainly have.
Not that you asked, but in addition to the Pads’ lid, I really love the A’s, Jays, D-backs and Rockies lids, as well.
Anyway! Thanks as always for indulging my love of uniforms/logos/etc.
Salute to the Madres
If you’re a local Padres fan, odds are you have at least heard of the San Diego Madres. Not just a wonderful bit of word play, but a wonderful collection of women and men who not only get together and support the team and socialize, but also do some great work in the community raising funds for local youth baseball and softball teams.
This past weekend, they held their long-overdue (thanks, COVID) 50th (!!) anniversary celebration and were nice enough to send an invitation my way.
I just can’t overstate what a lovely and wholesome group of people make up this club and it was wonderful being in their presence to help them celebrate their past and also to gear up for their future.
If you aren’t a member or aren’t familiar, be sure to check out their website. All are welcome.
In the Lab
Neat one this week, too, as the Padres and Point Loma Nazarene University officially unveiled their Biomechanics Lab.
Technology in sports has, like in most of society, I suppose, really skyrocketed in recent years, and it’s neat to see the team and a local institution come together to continue to move the ball forward.
Really good breakdown in the U-T, courtesy of Jeff Sanders, but if you’re wanting the quick version, here’s assistant GM Josh Stein putting the last 20 years of baseball into a tidy paragraph:
“When I first started, analytics and information — you were capturing the net result,” Stein said. “You were looking at box score information differently. Let’s study that — ‘Moneyball.’ Let’s analyze that a little bit different. Then it shifted more into, OK, let’s look at the baseball, the pitch and batted baseball: exit velocities, pitch velocities, vertical and horizontal breaks and things like that. Well, you take it a step further. What is the movement of the athlete that’s allowing them to impart those spins, impart that velocity, really have a swing that’s connected (to the ground)?”
So basically: we’ve figured out the importance of different kinds of spin, now let’s figure out how to most optimally achieve it. Absolutely fascinating stuff. Can see more for yourself in this nice little video from the team.
More than a Video Game
I’ve been a big fan of MLB The Show, which is produced here in San Diego, for many years. Like since before I joined the Padres and moved out here. They just do an absolutely brilliant job when it comes to all the little things that I love about baseball.
Once I arrived in town, I began to get to know a lot of the amazingly talented people who put this game together every year and my love for the franchise grew and grew (and not just because they snuck me into the game a few years ago).
They recently announced Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Blue Jays as their cover athlete for this year’s edition and to go with that, the team put together an absolutely vibrant documentary that was filmed in the Dominican Republic. It does about as good a job as anything I’ve ever seen at illustrating the passion and beauty and love of baseball in that country that has so wonderfully impacted the Major Leagues from coast to coast. It is very much worth your time and I have embedded it below:2
See You at Petco!
With Peoria front of mind, let’s not forget about Petco! The Padres recently announced FanFest will be held March 24th from 12:30-5:30 and will include a lot of great activities and opportunities, including the grand opening of the renovated Gallagher Square. Details, info, etc., all here.
One thing I’m really looking forward to is the Celebrity/Alumni softball game. The two teams are going to be managed by Trevor Hoffman and Tony Gwynn Jr. and there’s a rumor circulating about coaching staffs that I’ll hopefully be able to comment on a little bit down the line..
Also! ICYMI, single game tickets are now available for the 2024 season.
No Q&A stuff this time, but remember you can always send questions in and I’ll grab a couple here and there to address.
Hope everyone has a great rest of the week!
definitely saved the best for last
this is the first time I’ve put a YouTube video in the newsletter, so if it doesn’t work, hopefully this link will.