Padres Special: Remembering the 1984 N.L. Champion San Diego Padres

GRAIG NETTLES- THIRD BASE

Right before the start of the 1984 season, Trader Jack Mckeon picked up Graig Nettes from the New York Yankees for Dennis Rasmussen and Darin Cloninger.

Nettles was a home town guy, playing his high school ball at San Diego high school and going to college at San Diego State University. He was also the left-handed power bat and third baseman that the Padres very badly needed. Another veteran no-nonsense type player, like Nettles, meant the Padres clubhouse was going to have a different feel to it.

Graig Nettles was a fourth round pick out of SDSU in 1965. The Minnesota Twins came calling and off he went to start his professional career. Nettles lasted only three seasons in Minnesota and was dealt to the Cleveland Indians in a package deal for Luis Tiant.

Nettles had three decent seasons for the Indians but was dealt in 1973 to the Yankees. It was in New York that Nettles became a polished major league talent. He was a 5 time all-star for the Yankees and played a total of 11 seasons in the Bronx. 250 career home runs for the Yankees and over 1,500 games played with a .253 average. A borderline Yankee legend.

The 1984 season was not Nettles best by any means but 20 home runs from the third base position was a great thing. He was the perfect platoon partner to the right-handed hitting Luis Salazar.

Nettles played in 124 games at the age of 39 and hit .228 with 20 home runs and 65 runs batted in. He had a very hot August that season with a .266 batting average and 8 home runs and 13 runs batted in. He helped clinch the pennant with that August and on September 17th 1984, Nettles bloop triple scored the winning run in a walk off 11 inning effort against the Cincinnati Reds.

Graig Nettles also had a battle with Prostate cancer in 2007 and underwent surgery in early 2008. He is doing well and can still be seen at some Yankee and Padres functions. Nettles was a solid third baseman and still holds the record for assists in a single season. 412 assists in the 1971 season. Nettles son Jeff, was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 47th round of the 1998 MLB draft. Jeff Nettles a third baseman, short stop and first baseman retired from baseball in 2012, falling short of his goal of reaching the major leagues.

PAGE 6 LINK BELOW

James Clark

James was born and raised in America’s Finest City. He is a passionate baseball fan with even more passion towards his hometown Padres. Editor-In-Chief of EastVillageTimes.com. Always striving to bring you the highest quality in San Diego Sports News. Original content, with original ideas, that’s our motto. Enjoy.