Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the top 50 of each major North American sports team. That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists and consistently look to update them when necessary and based on necessity. As such, we are delighted to present our post-2024 revision of our top 50 San Diego Padres.

As for all of our top 50 players in baseball, we look at the following: 

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the National League.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles that are not reflected in a stat sheet.

Please note that our algorithm has changed, which yielded minor changes throughout the baseball lists.

Last year, the Padres won 93 Games and made it to the Division Series, where they lost to the eventual World Series Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers.  There were four new entrants bases on 2024, and several elevations.

As always, we present our top five, which saw one change based on the new algorithm.

1. Tony Gwynn

2. Trevor Hoffman

3. Dave Winfield

4. Jake Peavy

5. Randy Jones

You can find the entire list here.

Winfield moved ahead of Peavy to claim the #3 spot.

Infielder Manny Machado climbed one spot to #6.

Another Infielder, Fernando Tatis Jr., moved to #7 from #10.

The first of four new entrants is Infielder, Ha-Seong Kim, who is now with Tampa.  He enters at #25, and was erroneously left off last year’s revision.

Second Baseman Jake Cronenworth advanced to #28 from #34.

Pitcher Blake Snell, who is now with the Giants, climbed to #34 from #40.

Outfielder Jurickson Profar, who is now an Atlanta Brave, debuts at #42.

Pitcher Joe Musgrove enters at #43.

Pitcher Yu Darvish begins his Padres list at #44. 

We thank you for your continued support of our lists on Notinhalloffame.com.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the top 50 of each major North American sports team.  That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out, and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity.  As such, we are very happy to present our post-2023 revision of our top 50 San Diego Padres.

As for all of our top 50 players in baseball, we look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in Major League Baseball.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles that are not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, the Padres were considered to be World Series contenders, but they failed even to make the playoffs while barely having a winning record.  Nevertheless, there were three elevations and two new entrants to the list.

As always, we present our top five, which saw no changes:

1. Tony Gwynn

2. Trevor Hoffman

3. Jake Peavy

4. Dave Winfield

5. Randy Jones

You can find the entire list here.

Manny Machado, had a modest jump from #9 to #7.

Fernando Tatis Jr., who won his first Gold Glove last year, rocketed to #10 from #20.

Jake Cronenworth also rose, climbing to #34 from #39.

Making the list were reigning Cy Young winner, Blake Snell, who enters at #40, and current New York Yankee Outfielder, Trent Grisham, who debuts at #47.

We thank you for your continued support of our lists on Notinhalloffame.com.

When a front office orchestrates a major blockbuster trade for a reigning award-winner, they are deliberately aiming for an exceptional, almost rare achievement. In December 2020, the San Diego Padres did exactly that by making a large deal involving multiple prospects with the Tampa Bay Rays to acquire left-handed starter Blake Snell. Known for his fastball and a sharp mix of breaking pitches that earned him the American League Cy Young Award in 2018, Snell was welcomed in Southern California with high expectations. Although his early time there was marked by inconsistency and mechanical issues, it eventually culminated in one of the most dominant single-season pitching performances in modern baseball history.

To be equitable, his 2021 introductory campaign with the Padres was notably challenging, marked by shorter innings and inconsistent command. Snell endeavored to establish a consistent rhythm in his new milieu, often grappling with his delivery, ultimately finishing the summer with a 4.20 ERA and a 1.322 WHIP across 27 starts. Despite these mechanical difficulties, his innate ability to induce swings and misses persisted unequivocally, as evidenced by his accumulation of 170 strikeouts in merely 128.2 innings of play.

The 2022 schedule showed a steady, middle-ground progression as he settled into his surroundings. Though his traditional 8–10 record didn't turn heads, he flashed elite frontline capabilities in the second half, lowering his ERA to a sharp 3.38 and striking out 171 batters over 128 frames, helping anchor a deeper postseason run.

The third year was what they paid for. While he issued a major-league-leading 99 walks, his skill in deep counts and his unhittable stuff allowed him to eliminate traffic on the bases. He finished with a 14–9 record, leading the league with a stunning 2.25 ERA, a formidable 182 ERA+, and just 5.8 hits allowed per nine innings. He also achieved a personal best with 234 strikeouts, ending the summer by allowing only 2 earned runs over his last 23 innings. His command in tough situations earned him widespread national recognition, and Snell won the 2023 National League Cy Young Award. By securing this trophy, he joined an elite group of just seven pitchers in baseball history who have won this award in both leagues.

The Padres would make the playoffs in 2024, but did so without Snell, who left the club for their NL West rival, San Francisco, in free agency.  In San Diego, he had a 30–29 record, 575 strikeouts in 436.2 innings, and a sharp 3.22 ERA across 83 career starts.

When mapping out the history of modern pitching within the American League East, it becomes evident that the Tampa Bay Rays manage frontline arms in a manner distinct from any other organization in professional baseball. For the Rays, outstanding velocity and award-winning execution are never grounds for abandoning their disciplined, data-driven roster strategy. No single career trajectory exemplifies this analytical approach more than that of left-hander Blake Snell. Selected by the front office in the first round of the 2011 draft, the Seattle-born southpaw possessed an electrifying, high-velocity pitch repertoire featuring a blazing fastball and a penetrating, sharp-breaking curveball. Over five seasons representing the franchise, "Snellzilla" established himself as one of the most exceptional and highly variable strikeout artists of his generation. He demonstrated that when his command was fully optimized, he could attain a peak level of efficiency that nearly transcended the principles of modern pitching.

His initial performances across 2016 and 2017 featured an impressive display of raw talent; however, it was during the 2018 season that everything fully converged to produce a quintessential regular-season performance. Snell consistently dominated junior circuit lineups, transforming them into a routine occurrence. That season, he demonstrated an exemplary level of pitching, leading the American League with a remarkable 21 wins against only 5 losses and an outstanding 1.89 ERA over 31 starts. Advanced analytical metrics substantiate the extraordinary caliber of this peak, as evidenced by his impressive 217 ERA+ and an exceptionally low 5.6 hits allowed per nine innings, securing his first American League Cy Young Award and a top-ten placement in the AL MVP voting.

While his 2019 follow-up campaign was hindered by minor injury-induced leaks and an elevated 4.29 ERA, his value-dense high-leverage profile reached its apex during the pandemic-shortened 2020 regular season. Snell led the pitching staff with a robust 3.24 ERA, guiding the young, ambitious Rays roster to a historic American League pennant.

Yet his entire Tampa legacy is defined by the explosive, controversial milestone that erupted on a national stage during Game 6 of the 2020 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Dominating the Dodgers' powerhouse lineup, Snell had thrown 5.1 innings of brilliant, one-hit shutout ball, striking out nine on just 73 pitches. Operating under strict, analytical organizational directives to never let a starter face a lineup for a third time, manager Kevin Cash walked to the mound and pulled his cruising ace from the game.

The Dodgers rallied against the Tampa bullpen to win the game and title, creating an emotional moment still felt in baseball. True to their cost-effective approach, the franchise’s front office traded the 28-year-old pennant hero to the Padres in a lopsided, multi-player blockbuster that December, fearing his financial leverage would rise under his contract extension.