With the 2006 baseball season done and dusted, November was the month for off-season moves and player awards for outstanding achievement during this past season. The Padres may have bowed out in four games of the first round of the playoffs, but it was a season which saw them start slow, win and lose in streaks and hold their nerve down the stretch to win the National League West Division for the second straight year.
Still, manager Bruce Bochy left for the greener pastures of a vacant San Francisco Giants managerial position after 12 seasons in San Diego. During this time, he won more than 900 games “” a club record “” was awarded National League manager of the year in 1996 and led the Padres to four postseason appearances (out of five total in club history), including the World Series in 1998. He remains the only former Padre player to serve as the team’s manager.
In his place, the Padres hired Bud Black, a former pitcher and pitching coach with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Despite this being his first stint as a major league manager, Black has long been considered fit for the job. He becomes the 16th manager in Padres history and was officially unveiled during the Padres Awards Dinner on Nov. 9. During his seven seasons with the Angels, they won the American League West Division twice and the Wild Card in 2002, later taking the World Series in seven games from the San Francisco Giants that year. Black, of course, was responsible for running an Angels bullpen that kept Barry Bonds and company in check. He coached young talent like Francisco Rodriguez and the 2005 American League Cy Young Award winner Bartolo Colon.
“Pitching has been the key to our success and a big reason why we have won back-to-back National League West titles,” said Padres Executive Vice President/General Manager Kevin Towers in a prepared statement. “Bud is a proven ‘pitching guy,’ and I admire his approach in preparing for games and his attention to details.”
Also of note, outfielder Mike Cameron was awarded a Gold Glove for this, his first season with the Padres. It is the third time Cameron has been honored, having previously won in 2001 and 2003 while with the Seattle Mariners. He is also the Padres’ seventh player to win the award, bringing the total number of Gold Gloves won by San Diego players to 18. It is the first for San Diego since former third baseman Ken Caminiti won in 1997.
Expectedly, Padres closer and now all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman won the National League’s 2006 Rolaids Relief Man Award, given annually to honor the top relievers in baseball. In earning his 479th career save, he passed Lee Smith to write his name in the record books. It’s his second time winning this award.
Meanwhile, during the Padres Awards Dinner, held at the nearby Marriott Hotel and Marina, first baseman Adrian Gonzalez was named Padres Most Valuable Player as well as Favorite New Padre. He finished his first season as a Padre with a .304 batting average, 38 doubles, 24 home runs, 82 RBI and 83 runs scored. Hoffman won both the Clyde McCullough Award as the Padres’ pitcher of the year and the inaugural Fireman’s Award, given to the Padres’ top relief pitcher. And finally, pitcher Jake Peavy was honored with the Chairman’s Award for contributions to the San Diego community after he brought a Teen FOCUS camp to San Diego in 2006. Additionally, Peavy established a ticket program in which he purchased tickets and $5 food vouchers for 1,150 kids and chaperones.
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