Padres Editorial: San Diego Padres’ Mount Rushmore

Mandatory Credit: houstonchronicle.com

Trevor Hoffman

When the Padres traded Gary Sheffield and Rich Rodriguez to the Marlins for Andres Berumen, Jose Martinez and Trevor Hoffman, nobody could have predicted that the young relief pitcher would become an all-time great for the Friars but fast forward 16 years and that is exactly what Trevor Hoffman is. There is no way I could make a Padres Mount Rushmore without the one-time Major League saves record holder.  I mean how many players have awards named after them? That alone speaks to the impact that Hoffman had not only in San Diego but all over the baseball world.

With the Padres , Hoffman flat out dominated, striking out 1,029 opponents while winning 54 games with a 2.76 career ERA.  The most incredible stat for Hoffman though was his saves, totaling an incredible 552 with the Padres and 601 throughout his Major League career.

Let’s put that in perspective, Heath Bell next on the all-time Padres saves list has 134 saves, meaning he is only 418 behind Hoffman. But that’s just the Padres how does the rest of baseball compare? Well throughout the total history of baseball there have only been 26 players to record 300 saves. The number of players to reach 400 can be counted on one hand (Mariano Rivera, Lee Smith, John Franco, Billy Wagner and Hoffman). What about the 500 club? Just two members Mariano Rivera and the Padres own Trevor Hoffman. 600 Club, well that would be just Rivera and Hoffman again. Hoffman is in rare company, and has to be included as one of the best players to ever close.

On August 21^st, 2011 (what San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders dubbed Trevor Hoffman Day) the Padres Immortalized Hoffman and retired his number. Additionally, on August 30, 2014 the Padres chose Hoffman to become the ninth member of the San Diego Padres Hall of Fame. With all of these stats and achievements there is absolutely no way Hoffman can be left off of the Padres Mount Rushmore.

Next: Dave Winfield