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

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2 months ago

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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.

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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.

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“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.”

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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.”

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  • 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

San Diego sues federal government over razor wire fence near U.S.-Mexico border

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3 hours ago

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January 6, 2026

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San Diego sues federal government over razor wire fence near U.S.-Mexico border


The city of San Diego has filed a lawsuit against the federal government that alleges the construction of a razor wire fence near the U.S.-Mexico border constitutes trespassing on city property and has caused environmental harm to the land.

The complaint filed Monday in San Diego federal court states that razor wire fencing being constructed by U.S. Marines in the Marron Valley area has harmed protected plant and wildlife habitats and that the presence of federal personnel there represents unpermitted trespassing.

The lawsuit, which names the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of Defense among its defendants, says that city officials first discovered the presence of Marines and federal employees in the area in December.

The fencing under construction has blocked city officials from accessing the property to assess and manage the land, and the construction efforts have” caused and will continue to cause property damage and adverse environmental impacts,” according to the lawsuit.

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The suit seeks an injunction ordering the defendants to cease and desist from any further trespass or construction in the area.

“The city of San Diego will not allow federal agencies to disregard the law and damage city property,” City Attorney Heather Ferbert said in a statement. “We are taking decisive action to protect sensitive habitats, uphold environmental commitments and ensure that the rights and resources of our community are respected.”



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San Diego, CA

Padres roster review: Sung-Mun song

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15 hours ago

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January 6, 2026

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Padres roster review: Sung-Mun song





Padres roster review: Sung-Mun song – San Diego Union-Tribune


















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SUNG-MUN SONG

  • Position(s): Third base, second base
  • Bats / Throws: Left / Right
  • 2026 opening day age: 29
  • Height / Weight: 6-foot / 194 pounds
  • How acquired: Signed as a free agent in December 2025
  • Contract status: A four-year, $15 million deal will see Song make $2.5 million in 2026, $3 million in 2027, $3.5 million in 2028 and $4 million in 2029 if he does not opt out of last year; Half of his $1 million signing bonus is due in January 2026 and the other half in 2027; There is a $7 million mutual option for 2030.
  • fWAR in 2025: N/A
  • Key 2025 stats (KBO): .315 AVG, .387 OBP, .530 SLG, 26 HRs, 90 RBIs, 103 runs, 68 walks, 96 strikeouts, 25 steals (144 games, 646 plate appearances)

 

STAT TO NOTE

  • .214 — Song’s isolated power in 2025, a career high as he prepared for a jump to the majors. Isolated power measures a player’s raw power (extra bases per at-bat) and Song had a .190 OPS in 2018, in his third year as a pro in Korea, before it dropped to .101 in 2019 and then a career-low .095 in 2023. Hitting 19 homers pushed Song’s isolated power to .178 in 2024 and then a career-high 26 homers push it even higher in 2025.

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San Diego, CA

Poway removes hundreds of trees to make city safer

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1 day ago

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January 5, 2026

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Poway removes hundreds of trees to make city safer


Drivers traveling through the city of Poway may have noticed a dramatic change to the landscape. Since September, more than 1,400 trees — many of them eucalyptus — have been removed as part of the city’s hazardous mitigation grant project aimed at reducing wildfire risk and improving public safety.

Poway is spending roughly $3 million on the effort, which focuses on removing trees that are dead, dying or considered dangerous. Much of the cost is being reimbursed by FEMA. Officials say the project is designed to make emergency evacuation routes safer while improving the overall health of trees along major roadways, rights-of-way and open spaces.

“I was relieved that there were some efforts being put into improving our resiliency to wildfire in our community,” said Poway Fire Chief Brian Mitchell.

Mitchell said spacing out trees can slow the spread of a wildfire and prevent roads from becoming blocked during an emergency.

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“That certainly has the potential to block our first responders from accessing somebody’s house in the middle of an emergency,” Mitchell said.

City leaders also point to storm safety as a key reason for removing hazardous trees under controlled conditions rather than risking falling limbs or entire trees during severe weather.

“I don’t want to be driving down that street and just a random limb just happened to collapse, you know, just hit me,” said Poway resident Dawn Davis.

Davis said she also worries about the threat the trees pose to nearby homes.

“I don’t want anybody’s homes here to be damaged, either by them or fire,” Davis said.

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A Poway spokeswoman said a certified arborist evaluated nearly 6,800 trees in Poway. About 2,800 invasive trees were recommended for removal.

This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.



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