ALL-TIME PADRE ROOKIE TEAM (OFFENSE) By Jason Martinez sdpadrefan.com 3/14/08 With minor leaguers Chase Headley, Wade LeBlanc, and Matt Antonelli on the brink of reaching the majors, I have decided to choose my all-time Padre rookie team. The all-time rookie pitching staff will be posted soon. Let me know if you disagree. On a side note, here are some Padres that were the first to come to mind but didn't make the list for one reason or another: Derek Bell (1993): With 189 combined at bats with Toronto in '91 and '92, Bell no longer qualified as a rookie when he made his Padre debut in 1993. In the midst of the fire sale, Bell was terrific, batting .262 with 21 HR and 26 stolen bases. Cito Gaston (1969): While he did play a full season in San Diego as a rookie in 1969, he batted a measly .230 with 2 HR in 129 games. He had his best season as a pro the following season, when he hit .318 with 29 HR, 93 RBI, and his only All-Star selection as a major league player. Tony Gwynn (1982): Gwynn's breakout season came in 1983, when he batted .309 in 86 games. His rookie season was 1982, when he batted .289 in 54 games. Interestingly, he played mostly LF (23 games) and CF (28 games) during his rookie season. Kevin McReynolds (1983): K-MAC (I just made that up) had a breakout season in 1984, helping the team to its first ever NL Championship, but after 140 at bats in '83, no longer qualified as a rookie. Dave Winfield (1973): Winfield had a few too many at bats (141) in 1973 and did not qualify as a rookie during his excellent sophomore season of '74, when he hit .265 with 20 HR and 75 RBI. CATCHER - BENITO SANTIAGO (1987) stats: .300 BA, 18 HR, 79 RBI, 33 2B, 21 SB Santiago actually had 62 at-bats in '86, giving the Padres a taste of what was to come, batting .290 with 3 HR. In 1987, the 22 year-old won the NL Rookie of the Year award, as well as the Silver Slugger award for NL catchers. A flashy defender, Santiago threw out 12 runners trying to steal, mostly from his knees. Although he did not have much control of the strike zone offensively as a rookie (16 BB, 112 K), this was his best offensive season during his six years in San Diego and one of the best seasons ever by a Padre catcher. FIRST BASE - NATE COLBERT (1969) stats: .255 BA, 24 HR, 66 RBI, 20 2B, 9 3B Unlike Santiago, Colbert's better years were still far ahead (38 HR in '70 and '72). One of the few bright spots during the team's inaugural season, the 23 year-old first baseman hit 24 home runs, playing in Jack Murphy Stadium during the pre-short fence. Colbert played on six terrible Padre teams and was out of the majors by the time he was 30 years old. In 1972, he had one of the best single-day performances in MLB history, hitting five homers and knocking in 13 runs. SECOND BASE - JOSH BARFIELD (2006) stats: .280 BA, 13 HR, 58 RBI, 32 2B, 21 SB Barfield, a highly-touted prospect coming out of the minor league system, didn't disappoint during his rookie season. Showing good pop for a middle infielder, Barfield was an average defender who appeared to only have one real weakness: a lack of plate discipline (80 K, .318 OBP). This might have been the main reason for his short, one-year stint in San Diego, but his trade brought the team its best rookie third baseman in history. THIRD BASE - KEVIN KOUZMANOFF (2007) stats: .275 BA, 18 HR, 74 RBI, 30 2B 'Kouz' rebounded from a terrible start, to finish the season as one of the team's hottest hitters in a heated pennant race. Able to hit the ball with power to all fields, he shows the potential to be a .300-30-100 hitter in the majors. He enters the '08 season as the team's #3 hitter and along with Adrian Gonzalez, will be the main offensive threat in the Padre lineup. SHORTSTOP - KHALIL GREENE (2004) stats: .273 BA, 15 HR, 65 RBI, 31 2B Although Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith played his rookie season in San Diego, it took Smith more than 10 seasons to match Khalil Greene's rookie season home run total of 15. Defensively, there was none better than the 'Wizard of OZ' but Greene displayed amazing defensive skills, combining reliability with the ability to make amazing Ozzie Smith-like plays on the field. Although his batting average and on-base percentage have decreased significantly since his rookie season, Greene hit 27 HR with 97 RBI in 2007, terrific numbers for any position. OUTFIELD - JOHNNY GRUBB (1973) stats: .311 BA, .373 OBP, 8 HR, 37 RBI, 22 2B, 9 SB A 1st Round Pick by the Padres in the 1971 draft, Grubb reached the majors the following season, playing in seven games at 23 years of age. In '73, the rookie outfielder led a very good offensive team in hitting, while playing mostly in center field. Grubb made his only all-star team in 16 seasons in 1974. He was traded to Cleveland after the '76 season in a package for outfielder George Hendrick. OUTFIELD - CARMELO MARTINEZ (1984) stats: .250 BA, 13 HR, 66 RBI, 28 2B While it was Kevin McReynolds, the team's young center fielder, that had the better season and career, it was Martinez who started in left field as a rookie for the eventual NL Champions. While his stats are not great, it should be pointed out that he had a very unrookie-like walk/strikeout ratio (68/82) and had 10 sacrifice flies on the season. Martinez also had a very good arm, finishing the season with 15 outfield assists. OUTFIELD - GENE RICHARDS (1977) stats: .290 BA, 5 HR, 32 RBI, .363 OBP, 11 3B, 56 SB Richards was the catalyst for some very speedy Padre teams in the late 70's and early 80's. His 56 stolen bases, and later 61 in 1980, were team records until Alan Wiggins came along a few years later. He finished third in the NL in Rookie of the Year voting. He signed with the Giants after the 1983 season after seven solid seasons with the Padres. HONARABLE MENTION / BENCH BILL ALMON, SS (1977): .261 BA, 2 HR, 43 RBI, 11 3B, 20 SB ROBERTO ALOMAR, 2B (1988): .266 BA, 9 HR, 41 RBI, 84 R, 24 SB JOHN KRUK, OF (1986): .309 BA, 4 HR, 38 RBI, .403 OBP XAVIER NADY, OF (2003): .267 BA, 9 HR, 39 RBI, 17 2B LUIS SALAZAR, 3B (1980): .337 BA, .372 OBP, 7 3B, 11 SB OZZIE SMITH, SS (1978): .258, 6 3B, 40 SB