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

GARRY TEMPLETON- SHORTSTOP

Garry Templeton amassed 4,512 at bats as a Padre with a .252/.325/.418 batting line. He totaled 43 home runs and drove in 427 runners with 101 stolen bases.

He played a total of 10 seasons with the Padres from 1981-1991. In 148 games that 1984 season, Templeton hit .258 with 2 homers and 35 runs batted in.

He was drafted by the St Louis Cardinals in the first round (13th pick) of the 1975 draft. It only took Templeton two years to reach the majors as he made his professional debut on August 9, 1976. He ended up hitting .291 that year in 213 at bats. Very impressive for a 20-year old

December 10, 1981 the St Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres agreed on a six player trade. The Padres traded defensive wizard Ozzie Smith, Al Olmsted and Steve Mura to the Cardinals for offensive shortstop Garry Templeton, Sixto Lezcano and Luis DeLeon. Templeton had worn out his welcome in St. Louis and Ozzie Smith was in a contract battle with the Padres, the deal seemed to make sense for both teams.

Templeton is probably most commonly known for his comments about not showing up to play 1979 All Star game (which he was elected as a reserve). He had better numbers than Dave Concepcion and Larry Bowa who were elected as starters. Templeton openly stated: “If I ain’t startin. I ain’t departin”. He did not play that year in the All-Star game, and was only elected to one more Mid-Season Classic. (1985 with Padres).

As a Padre, Templeton never really displayed that prolific bat or bad attitude for that matter. He was still an above average hitting shortstop, but never once hit .300 as a Padre. His best season was 1985 when he hit .282 with 6 home runs, 55 runs batted in and 16 stolen bases in 148 games. He was named team captain in 1987, by then manager Larry Bowa and remained captain until he was traded in 1991.

Garry Templeton stayed in the game of baseball and has managed in the Anaheim Angels organization for four different times. He lived in Poway for a time after his retirement. His son Garry Templeton Jr. played minor league baseball from 1999-2007 and became manager of the Hawaii Stars in 2012. The apple does not fall too far from the tree.

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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.