Three former Padres born this day

Three former Padres - who totaled just 42 games with the team between them - celebrate their birthdays today. Each stuck with the club long enough to record exactly one extra-base hit apiece. As has been the case with so many other players, none of them played another major league game after their time in San Diego.

George Hinshaw was selected by the Padres in the eleventh round of the 1980 draft and hit well as he rose quickly through low-A, A, and AA before getting six games with the big club in September, 1982. The outfielder singled four times and took three walks in 18 trips to the plate. 1983 saw him sent to AAA for the first time, where he spent the Las Vegas Stars' entire season at third base, committing 41 errors in 130 games. Despite the conversion being an outright flop, he got another September call-up, at which point he picked up seven hits - including a double - in 17 plate appearances. He went back to Vegas the next year and failed to progress at the hot corner, so he was returned to the outfield in 1985, and stayed there as he bounced around AAA through 1990, with a moderately successful season in Japan thrown in the mix. Those two Septembers in San Diego ended up being his sole major league experience, and he will always be able to tell people he had a better career batting average than teammate Tony Gwynn, .355 to .338. Of course he might want to leave out the part about only getting 31 at-bats.

Jim Presley's path to the Padres was one that is depressingly familiar to Friars fans. The third baseman was an All-Star for Seattle in 1986, his second full season, but it was all downhill from there until he signed with San Diego before the 1991 season. He lasted all of 20 games, hitting .136/ .200/ .186 in 66 plate appearances. After being released, Presley latched on with the Rangers organization, but retired for good after struggling with their AAA club.

The most recent October 23 baby to play for the Padres is Todd Sears, who spent all of nine games with the team in September, 2003 after coming over in a waiver trade with the Twins. He played one inning at first base and pinch-hit eight times, collecting a single and a double. Like Hinshaw, he followed his only two seasons with major league experience with a few more shots at AAA with a couple organizations. Sears finally called it a day after the 2007 season.

One other player who was born on this day has ties to the Padres. Bud Smith no-hit the Padres for the Cardinals back in September, 2001, in his eleventh major league start. Stop me if you've heard this before, but his next season was his last in the bigs, but he did spend a few more years in AAA with multiple organizations. Smith hung up his spikes for good after - yep, you guessed it - the 2007 season.