San Diego, CA

Padres notes: Craig Stammen eager to rely on Ruben Niebla, A.J. Preller talks extension

Published

2 months ago

November 10, 2025

Padres notes: Craig Stammen eager to rely on Ruben Niebla, A.J. Preller talks extension

Among the uniformed personnel in attendance for new manager Craig Stammen’s introductory press conference, pitching coach Ruben Niebla arrived early and took a seat in the back row Petco Park auditorium.

Afterward, he joined pitchers Joe Musgrove, Jason Adam and Yuki Matsui for small talk along the wall. He smiled and shook hands with all the media members who approached him — one of four finalists for the job that went to Stammen — but politely declined to speak.

Monday was about Stammen, Niebla said.

Maybe so.

But the Padres’ new 41-year-old manager doesn’t think he’s going far without the Padres’ pitching coach.

“Honestly, he’s the guy I’m going to rely on the most — his experience,” Stammen said. “I think he’s one of the best coaches in our entire sport, not just pitching coaches, but coaches overall. And we’re going to put a lot on his plate. I’m going to put a lot on his plate, but I’m excited to work with Ruben. It’s going to be an extension of our relationship that started with me as a player and now we get to work hand in hand as manager (and) pitching coach.

“I’m excited about it. It’s going be a lot of fun.”

That relationship began in 2016 in Cleveland, where Niebla worked as a minor league pitching coordinator. Stammen had just been non-tendered by the Nationals and was working his way back from arm injury, though he would not return to the majors until the following year after signing a minor league deal with the Padres.

By the time Niebla joined Stammen in San Diego in 2022, Stammen was in his age 38 season. He threw 40⅔ innings that year, tried to return on another minor league deal the following season and retired later later in the summer of 2023, triggering the start of a post-playing career that saw Stammen serve as a special assistant that roved between the majors and minors the last two seasons.

“The last few years,” Stammen said, “I’ve seen his processes, kind of behind the scenes on how he’s able to get the best out of all of our players.”

Niebla has two years left on his contract and could see his role expand after joining Albert Pujols and former Padres catcher Nick Hundley as finalists. Niebla, Stammen said he and A.J. Preller, the Padres’ president of baseball operations, have already had a couple of “15-hour days” putting their heads together about the coaching staff that will come together shortly and the direction of the organization.

Asked if there could be an extra job title added to Niebla’s resume — the “associate manager” was essentially invented for Skip Schumaker when he was made a part of Jayce Tingler’s staff (2020-2021) — Preller said “we’ll be talking about that over the course of the next couple days.”

“When we make like the staff announcements … we’ll make sure that we have a lot of different areas covered and Ruben’s going to cover a lot of those areas,” he said

Preller added: “He’s going to have a big-time voice in it. He’s going to continue to get more opportunity, not just to help the pitchers and the pitching staff. I think Craig mentioned it. He’s a good coach. It’s not just a good pitching coach. And he’s got a lot of good perspectives that we even saw in this process … that we want to make sure we get through to that big-league clubhouse. Craig’s going to use him a lot.”

Extension talk

Stammen asked about Preller’s long-term status with the organization. All the candidates did, Preller said.

Toward that end, Padres chairman John Seidler was made available to discuss Preller’s future and Seidler’s vision for the team during the managerial interview process. While Preller appears to be headed to the general managers’ meetings without a resolution, he appears to be overly anxious about officially securing his future in San Diego beyond 2026.

“Like I’ve said before, I’m looking forward to being here for a long-time,” Preller said after Stammen’s press conference.

Asked if he expects a resolution this offseason, Preller said, “I don’t know. I’m under contract for next year. … Like I say it all the time, I love San Diego and the city and the organization. … We’re in a spot where we’ve got to go put a coaching staff together. We’ve got … free agency and trades are starting. We’re leaving here and few minutes to go to the GM meetings and kind of kick off the offseason. So I think that’s, that’s really the focus. And, you know, I’ll continue to have conversations with John about it.”

Notable

Adam said there’s a “chance” he’s ready for opening day. Adam, 34, sustained a season-ending ruptured quad tendon while attempting to field his position on Sept. 1. “I’m doing well,” Adam said. “Just getting strength back is the biggest thing. God willing, I should be pitching in spring training. I don’t know if I’ll be right on time. There’s a chance I’m ready for opening day. That’s what we’re striving for, but we’re not going to be stupid about it.”

Adam been planning to stay at Stammen’s place in San Diego in 2026 until Stammen was hired as the manager and decided to relocate his family full-time to San Diego. “Yeah we were, but I’ll gladly give that up for him to be our manager,” Adam said. “I’m so excited. Great person. Great family. Just ask anybody about him, you’re going to get a glowing review. I think that says everything you need to know.”

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San Diego, CA

Barricaded individual in custody following police response in Mission Valley

Published

10 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Barricaded individual in custody following police response in Mission Valley

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — San Diego Police responded to a barricaded individual in the Mission Valley area Thursday afternoon, prompting a heavy law enforcement presence.

The Nexstar Media video above details resources for crime victims

The department confirmed around 1 p.m. that officers were on scene in the 1400 block of Hotel Circle North, and are working to safely resolve the situation. Authorities asked the public to avoid the area and allow officers the space needed to conduct their operations.

Police described the incident as a domestic violence restraining order violation. At this time, it’s unknown if the person is armed.

No injuries have been reported.

The suspect was taken into custody within an hour.

Further details about the barricaded person were not immediately released. Police say updates will be shared as more information becomes available.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

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San Diego, CA

Padres roster review: Luis Campusano

Published

22 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Padres roster review: Luis Campusano – San Diego Union-Tribune

LUIS CAMPUSANO

Position(s): Catcher
Bats / Throws: Right / Right
2026 opening day age: 27
Height / Weight: 5-foot-10 / 232 pounds
How acquired: Second round of the draft in 2017 (Cross Creek HS, Ga.)
Contract status: Will make $900,000 after agreeing to a one-year deal to avoid arbitration; Will not be a free agent until 2029.
fWAR in 2025: Minus-0.4
Key 2025 stats: .000 AVG, .222 OBP, .000 SLG, 0 HRs, 0 RBIs, 0 runs, 6 walks, 11 strikeouts, 0 steals (10 games, 27 plate appearances)

STAT TO NOTE

1 — The number of plate appearances for Campusano while in the majors between June 1 and June 13 and the one at-bat resulted in a weak, pinch-hit groundout against a position player (Kike Hernandez) on the mound in mop-up duty. Campusano was recalled to the majors four times in 2025 but did not get a real opportunity get settled after he went 0-for-6 with four walks and a strikeout in three straight starts as a DH in early May. Of course, hitting .227/.281/.361 with eight homers over 299 plate appearances after getting the first real chance to start in 2024 likely informed how the Padres viewed his opportunity in 2025.

Down — Called up a final time on the last day of the regular season, Campusano balked at the idea that the season did not go the way he wanted. “I had a great season,” he said as he and his teammates packed for the NL Wild Card Series in Chicago. And he did … for Triple-A El Paso. He hit more home runs than ever (25), drove in more runs (95) and finished with a career-high 1.036 OPS, tops among all qualifying Triple-A hitters. The disappointment inferred in the question posed to Campusano was that he was not able to impact the big-league team in any way in 2025, which began with the team choosing to bring in a 40-year-old Yuli Gurriel a chance on the opening day roster over a homegrown product. Once billed as the catcher of the future, Campusno did not catch a single game in the majors, nor did he get any hits, although the opportunity to play was sporadic after getting three straight starts as a DH in early May (see stat to note). The Padres even lost back-up catcher Elias Díaz to an oblique injury over the final weekend of the regular season, but Campusano — who played out the string for a Triple-A El Paso team that did not make the playoffs rather than participate in the majors as a September call-up — was added to the postseason roster more as a right-handed bat than a third catcher (Martín Maldonado was also re-added to the team for the playoffs as the defensive back-up to Freddy Fermin). Campusano, of course, was not asked to help the team in either capacity before the Padres were eliminated in three games.

2026 OUTLOOK

Campusano is finally out of minor league options this year, so the Padres will either have to carry him on the roster, trade him or expose him to waivers. He has fans in the organization, but two big-league staffs headed by Bob Melvin and Mike Shildt seemingly lost faith in his ability to catch a game and all the responsibilities that come with that. It remains to be seen what impact the arrival of robo umps will have on how new manager Craig Stammen views Campusano’s ability behind the plate, but he’s been a potent minor league hitter who has yet to truly get on track in the majors beyond the second half of 2023 (.875 OPS, 6 HRs). Campusano has dabbled at first base in recent years in the minors (12 starts total), so perhaps he settles into a role as a second catcher/right-handed DH/first base option to start 2026.

Luis Campusano #15 of the San Diego Padres and Nick Pivetta #27 walk to the dugout during a practice before the Wildcard series against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Sept. 29, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

ROSTER RANKINGS

22. C Luis Campusano
23. LHP Yuki Matsui
24. INF Sung-Mun Song
25. RHP Matt Waldron
26. OF Bryce Johnson
27. RHP Ron Marinaccio
28. RHP Bryan Hoeing
29. LHP Kyle Hart
30. RHP Jhony Brito
31. INF Will Wagner
32. OF Tirso Ornelas
33. RHP Garrett Hawkins
34. RHP Miguel Mendez
35. RHP Daison Acosta
36. RHP Ty Adcock
37. RHP Alek Jacob
38. INF Mason McCoy

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San Diego, CA

2 San Diego Eateries Named Among ‘Most Beautiful New Restaurants’ In America

Published

1 day ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

2 San Diego Eateries Named Among ‘Most Beautiful New Restaurants’ In America

SAN DIEGO, CA — Two San Diego County eateries were named among the most beautiful restaurants that opened last year in the country.

Carlsbad-based Lilo was ranked No. 4 and La Jolla-based Lucien was ranked No. 9 on Robb Report’s list of the most beautiful new restaurants in the U.S. for 2025.

Lilo, which opened in April, features a multi-course tasting menu served around a 24-seat chef’s counter.

The restaurant, co-owned by Chef Eric Bost and John Resnick, earned a Michelin star just months after opening its doors. The eatery was also the only one in San Diego to land on The New York Times list of the 50 best restaurants in America.

Lucien, which opened in July, also offers a chef’s tasting menu, with more than a dozen courses. The 30-seat restaurant, is owned and helmed by Northern California native Chef Elijah Arizmendi, along with partners Brian Hung and Melissa Lang.

“I’m very grateful for the recognition from Robb Report,” Arizmendi told Patch. “Lucien is deeply personal to me, and the space was designed as an extension of my philosophy — one centered on intention, hospitality and the joy of sharing something meaningful to others.”

The list spotlights 21 restaurants in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City and other cities across the country. View the full report here.

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