Friars Flashback: January 19th, 2010-Is Two Better Than One?

When it comes to how the San Diego Padres formerly did business, it’s hard to make heads or tails of much over the past several years. Today’s Friars Flashback takes us back to this day, five years ago. Do you remember what happened? No? Don’t worry, neither did I until I started digging into some archives about off-season Padres moves of yesteryear.

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After several years in the big leagues, and a prior stint in San Diego with the Padres, the team brought back outfielder Scott Hairston. Okay, sounds like a simple enough deal. Well, one Hairston obviously wasn’t enough for the Padres’ front office, because on this day, five years ago, after the ink had barely dried on Scott’s contract, the Friars signed his brother, Jerry, Jr. to a contract as well.

Scott’s second go around in America’s Finest City was short lived, as he spent only the 2010 season in San Diego, before moving on once more. He posted an ugly triple slash line of .210/.295/.346 in 104 games for the Padres. It would even be forgivable somewhat had he brought respectable power numbers to the fold, but no, that didn’t happen either. How does 10 bombs and 36 driven in sound? Yeah, I need a Rolaids as well.

What about older brother Jerry? He was coming off a solid utility role with the defending World Series champion New York Yankees, and thought it would be a kick to play with baby brother. In 119 contests, the super-utility man and the son and grandson of former big leaguers, matched his brother’s power output, going yard 10 times as well, but drove in 14 more runners. He hit .244 and was gone at season’s end just like Scott had been.

It’s not very often that a team has a pair of brothers on the same squad at the same time, and this just happened to be one of those unique and strange times in the history of the San Diego Padres. The Brothers Hairston, producers of 20 home runs, and 86 driven in, in a combined 224 games, or about two-thirds of the 2010 production of one Adrian Gonzalez, who hit .298 that season, and played in 160 games. Man, no wonder this team has stunk for so long. Sheesh.