The 1969 San Diego Padres season was the inaugural season in franchise history. They joined the National League along with the Montreal Expos via the 1969 Major League Baseball expansion. In their inaugural season, the Padres went 52–110 (the same record as their expansion counterpart), finishing last in the newly created National League West, 41 games behind the division champion Atlanta Braves. The Padres finished last in the majors as a team in runs scored (468), hits (1,203) and batting average (225).
Offseason
Expansion draft
The 1968 MLB expansion draft was held on October 14, 1968. Below is a list of players drafted by the Padres. "Pick" refers to the overall draft position of a pick. Player Former Team PickOllie BrownPadres Timeline | padres.com: HistorySan Francisco Giants1stDave GiustiSt. Louis Cardinals3rdDick SelmaNew York Mets5thAl SantoriniAl Santorini at Baseball-ReferenceAtlanta Braves7thJosé ArciaChicago Cubs9thClay KirbySt. Louis Cardinals12thFred KendallCincinnati Reds14thJerry MoralesNew York Mets16thNate ColbertNate Colbert at Baseball ReferenceHouston Astros 18thZoilo VersallesLos Angeles Dodgers20thFrank RebergerChicago Cubs22ndJerry DaVanonSt. Louis Cardinals24thLarry StahlLarry Stahl at Baseball ReferenceNew York Mets 26thDick KelleyAtlanta Braves28thAl FerraraLos Angeles Dodgers 30thMike CorkinsSan Francisco Giants31stTom DukesHouston Astros33rdRick JamesChicago Cubs35thTony GonzálezPhiladelphia Phillies 37thDave RobertsPittsburgh Pirates39thDon ShawNew York Mets40thIvan MurrellHouston Astros42ndJim WilliamsLos Angeles Dodgers44thBilly McCool Cincinnati Reds46thRoberto PeñaPhiladelphia Phillies48thAl McBeanPittsburgh Pirates50thRafael Robles San Francisco Giants51stFred Katawczik Cincinnati Reds53rdRon Slocum Pittsburgh Pirates55thSteve Arlin Philadelphia Philles57thCito GastonCito Gaston at Baseball ReferenceAtlanta Braves59th
Other transactions December 3, 1968: Dave Giusti was traded by the Padres to the St. Louis Cardinals for Ed Spiezio, Danny Breeden, Ron Davis and Phil Knuckles (minors).Ed Spiezio at Baseball Reference March 28, 1969: Ron Davis and Bobby Klaus were traded by the Padres to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Chris Cannizzaro and Tommie Sisk.Chris Cannizzaro at Baseball Reference
1968 MLB June amateur draft The Padres and Montreal Expos, along with the two American League expansion teams set to debut in 1969, the Kansas City Royals and Seattle Pilots, were allowed to participate in the June 1968 MLB first-year player draft, although the new teams were barred from the lottery's first three rounds. The Padres drafted only 16 players in the 1968 June draft, and of the players the Padres were able to sign, one (outfielder Dave Robinson) reached the major leagues."1968 San Diego Padres Draft Picks in the June MLB Draft," Baseball Reference
Regular season
The first game
Scorecard
Batting Houston AstrosABRHRBISan Diego PadresABRHRBIAlou (RF)4130Robles (SS)4000Morgan (2B) 3000Peña (2B)3100Miller (CF)4000González (CF)4000Rader (3B)4011Brown (RF)4011Blefary (1B)4010Davis (1B)3000Watson (LF)4000Colbert (1B)0000Menke (SS)3000Stahl (LF)3000Edwards (C)3000Spiezio (3B)3110Wilson (P)2000Cannizzaro (C)2000Geiger (PH)1000Selma (P)2020Billingham (P)0000 - - - - -Totals32151Totals28242
Pitching Houston AstrosIPHRERBBSOWilson, L (0–1)6.032214Billingham2.010003Totals8.042217
San Diego PadresIPHRERBBSOSelma, W (1–0)9.0511212Totals9.0511212
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Notable transactions April 14, 1969: Chris Krug was signed as a free agent by the Padres.Chris Krug at Baseball Reference April 17, 1969: Al McBean was traded by the Padres to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Tommy Dean and Leon Everitt.Tommy Dean at Baseball Reference April 25, 1969: Dick Selma was traded by the Padres to the Chicago Cubs for Joe Niekro, Frankie Libran and Gary Ross.Joe Niekro at Baseball Reference May 22, 1969: Bill Davis and Jerry DaVanon were traded by the Padres to the St. Louis Cardinals for John Sipin and Sonny Ruberto.Sonny Ruberto at Baseball Reference May 23, 1969: Chris Krug was released by the Padres. June 13, 1969: Tony González was traded by the Padres to the Atlanta Braves for Van Kelly, Walt Hriniak and Andy Finlay (minors).Van Kelly at Baseball Reference
Draft picks June 5, 1969: 1969 Major League Baseball draft Randy Elliott was drafted by the Padres in the 1st round (24th pick).Randy Elliott at Baseball Reference Doug DeCinces was drafted by the Padres in the 18th round, but did not sign.Doug DeCinces at Baseball Reference
Roster 1969 San Diego Padres Roster Pitchers Catchers
Infielders Outfielders Manager
Coaches
Player stats = Indicates team leader
Batting
Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Pos Player G AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB C 134 418 23 92 .220 4 33 0 1B 139 483 64 123 .255 2466 6 2B 120 302 35 65 .215 0 10 14 3B 121 355 29 83 .234 13 43 1 SS 101 273 14 48 .176 2 9 0 LF 138 366 39 95 .260 14 56 0 CF 129 391 20 90 .230 2 28 4 RF 151 568 76 150 .264 20 61 10
Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Player G AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB 139 472 44 118 .250 4 30 0 111 247 19 63 .255 3 25 3 68 229 22 51 .223 2 9 2 73 209 16 51 .244 3 15 0 53 182 17 41 .225 2 8 1 95 162 10 32 .198 3 10 3 31 66 4 15 .227 0 1 0 24 59 4 8 .136 0 3 0 31 57 1 10 .175 0 1 0 19 41 5 8 .195 1 6 0 10 26 2 4 .154 0 0 0 13 25 4 7 .280 0 2 0 13 24 6 7 .292 1 5 0 17 21 3 3 .143 0 0 0 6 20 1 2 .100 0 0 1 8 17 0 1 .059 0 0 0 10 10 1 1 .100 0 1 0
Pitching = Indicates league leader Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 35 215.2 7 20 3.80 113 37 202.0 8 17 3.70 55 32 184.2 8 14 3.95 111 27 136.0 4 8 3.57 96 4 22.0 2 2 4.09 20 1 7.0 0 1 5.14 1
Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 53 143.0 2 13 4.78 59 46 109.2 3 12 4.19 58 17 64.2 5 6 4.31 17 22 48.2 0 3 4.81 19 6 17.0 1 3 8.47 13 4 10.2 0 1 9.28 9
Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO 54 3 5 7 4.30 35 67 1 2 6 3.59 65 61 7 2 1 4.79 67 13 1 0 1 7.25 15 5 0 1 0 8.04 11
Award winners
1969 Major League Baseball All-Star Game Chris Cannizzaro, catcher, reserve
Farm system
Elmira affiliation shared with Kansas City RoyalsJohnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 2nd and 3rd editions. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 1997 and 2007
References
External links 1969 San Diego Padres at Baseball Reference 1969 San Diego Padres at Baseball Almanac