Padres have just one 100-game winner in franchise history

Unfortunately known for eccentric behavior and off-field matters, right-hander Eric Show stands alone atop a list of San Diego hurlers as the franchise’s only 100-game winner.

Show, who pitched for the Padres from from 1981 to 1990, notched exactly 100 wins as a member of the club – with his only other win coming in 1991 as a member of the Oakland Athletics. It’s pretty wild that no other hurler has accomplished this feat over the years, though.

More from Friars on Base

• Jurickson Profar free agency update likely rules out Padres reunion
• Fernando Tatis Jr. may not take to outfield move after Xander Bogaerts addition
• Padres News: Fernando Tatis Jr. trade rumors, Seth Lugo chase, Manny Machado
• Padres barely missed out on high-end veteran starting pitcher
• This veteran DH target seems ideal for contending Padres roster

Unless you were a fan at this time, Show isn’t a name you’re likely all that familiar with. We’re not talking about a pitcher who’s well-known by national baseball fans. Still, he has a prominent place in Padres history and it’s worth looking back at his decade-long career.

An 18th-round pick of San Diego in the 1978 MLB Draft, the right-hander made his debut three years later, tossing a pair of scoreless innings out of the pen against the Cubs. He got a good amount of work that September, getting into 15 games and finishing off four contests.

The next year, arguably his best big league season, Show finished eighth in NL Rookie of the Year voting after showcasing his skills as a jack-of-all-trades for the Padres staff. He pitched in a career-high 47 games, finishing 12 and making 14 starts while compiling an impressive 2.64 ERA across 150 innings of work.

Padres quietly got a lot out of Eric Show in his career

Although he didn’t qualify to be considered a league leader, that certainly shouldn’t take anything away from Show’s 2.64 ERA – which would have ranked fourth in MLB that year. The Riverside, CA native won 15 games in each of the next two seasons, before adding another dozen in 1985.

From that point forward, though, Show only managed double-digit wins one more time – in 1988, when he tallied a single-season best 16 victories and 234 2/3 innings of work. Over his final two seasons with the Padres, though, he managed a 4.99 ERA, going 14-14 before the team cut ties with him.

Drugs and erratic behavior contributed to his decline late in his career, ultimately causing his premature death just before his 38th birthday in 1994. So while we may always think of the Jake Peavy or Randy Jones of the world, Eric Show’s legacy lives on as the leading man on the Padres’ all-time win list.