The San Diego Padres established a name for themselves in 1968 after being awarded a National League franchise team during an owners meeting in Chicago. As the initial expansion draft took place – the team crafted a solid team consisting of thirty players, with Ollie Lee “Downtown” Brown as their first pick. The group of newly found teammates would go on to defeat Houston 2-1 during their major league debut at San Diego Stadium in 1969.
The Southern Californian team decided to adopt the name “Padres” to honor the minor league teams that had previously played in the area. “Padres” is the Spanish term for fathers or priests – referring to the friars that recognized San Diego as the site of the first Spanish Mission in the state.
Although this sun-soaking team has yet to bring home the Commissioner’s Trophy, they have appeared in the playoffs five times – reaching the World Series only twice. Despite this fact, the Padres have had many baseball greats take the field in their name. Tony Gwynn, known as “Mr. Padre,” was one of the greatest hitters the MLB has ever seen – and has displayed immense loyalty by sticking with the club for twenty seasons. Fan favorite, Randy Jones, created a lasting bond among Padres fans after being the first player on the team to receive the CY Young award in 1976 – going 22-14 with a 2.74 ERA and 25 complete games.
A teams logo is the emblem that drives instant recognition among fans, and creates a whole new realm of respect for the team and home city. We decided to take a look into the history of #PadresNation to see how their logo has transformed since their inception.
Notable Logo Changes
Entering the league in 1969, the Padres used seven different logos and four different colorways. Throughout time, the team mainly used a logo that placed emphasis on the team and city name. The Padres, although considered one of the younger franchises in the MLB, have had their share of logo changes. The 2016 season marks the latest modification to the team’s emblem; midnight blue, white and gold are utilized as the team’s primary colors.
1969–1984:
The inaugural logo uses a friar dressed in a brown robe swinging a baseball bat.The team name is displayed outside of the image as well as on the upper-part of the bat.
1985:
The Padres ditch the original image, and opt for a simple brown-orange colored script of the team name and city. “Padres” slopes downward between the text “San Diego Baseball Club.”
1986–1989:
The logo primarily remains the same, but loses the text “San Diego Baseball Club.”
1990:
The team adds a more noticeable orange trim to the logo. The script “San Diego Baseball Club” is reintroduced on a ring behind the team name.
1991:
Ditching the brown/tan colorways, the team opts for a sleek navy blue shading instead.
1992–2003:
The blue shading on the ring is replaced for a simple white look. Pinstripes are added to the background of the logo.
2004–2010:
The team takes a complete 180 degree turn by using gold and blue as their primary colors. The team name is pictured on a baseball diamond with light blue waves underneath.
2011:
The city name “San Diego” is removed as the rest of the logo remains very similar to the previous year.
2012–2014:
The Padres unveil a simplistic design with the interlocking letters of “SD” representing the city name. The logo sits in the middle of a two-ring design that displays “San Diego Padres Baseball Club.” The gold color is ditched as the team uses white and navy blue as the dominant colors.
2015–Present:
The team opts for a minimalist logo, with the interlocking letters “SD” in midnight blue. The ring and city name are removed.
Are you apart of #PadresNation? Represent San Diego with styles of new and old by heading over to Fanatics.com – one of the nations top online retailers of sports apparel and merchandise.
Sources
- http://www.sportslogos.net/logos/list_by_team/73/San_Diego_Padres/
- http://mlb.mlb.com/sd/history/timeline.jsp
- http://sportsteamhistory.com/san-diego-padres-logo-history
- http://www.baseball-reference.com/
- http://sandiego.padres.mlb.com/sd/history/sd_padres_hof.jsp
- http://sandiego.padres.mlb.com/sd/history/sd_padres_hof.jsp
- http://sandiego.padres.mlb.com/sd/history/postseason_results.jsp
- http://teamnameorigin.com/mlb/nickname/san-diego-padres
