Players’ Weekend Gives Padres Another Chance to Honor Peter Seidler

DENVER — When San Diego Padres owner and chairman Peter Seidler passed away in November, there was absolutely no doubt that his legacy with the franchise and in the city of San Diego would continue long after his death.

This weekend in Denver, as players around Major League Baseball celebrated Players’ Weekend, the focus on player-focused causes within the Padres clubhouse was a chance for reflection upon exactly what Seidler’s legacy continues to be.

Starting pitcher Joe Musgrove will take the mound on Sunday wearing a pair of cleats that shines a light on the Armed Services YMCA San Diego.

As you can see in the social media post from the Padres below, those cleats draw attention to what has been done by Musgrove and the Peter Seidler Legacy Projects to help military families, a key demographic in San Diego.

Before taking the mound against the Colorado Rockies, Musgrove reflected upon the impact that Seidler had and continues to have in San Diego.

“From the fan perspective, he’s given the city and fans of San Diego more joy than they’ve ever been able to experience in Padres baseball history,” Musgrove said. “But I think when you’re a player, you see more of the behind the scenes stuff that goes on.

“As a player, you always try to find ways to get involved in the community and have attachments to the people that you’re playing in front of. And he was one of the best at laying that foundation out there for us. The whole Padres organization does a really good job of creating opportunities for us to get involved in the community and get behind some pretty amazing causes.”

For the Padres, there are constant reminders of Seidler everywhere. His initials are on San Diego’s jerseys for every game and those same initials travel around North America with the Padres on a simple yellow heart that is placed in plain sight for every game.

“He is someone who is going to be greatly missed, but there are plans in place to carry his legacy on through some of the things he started,” Musgrove said.

For Musgrove, knowing the cleats that he will wear will be auctioned off after the weekend concludes and the proceeds will help military families adds even more meaning to the Players’ Weekend activities.

“This (cause) is something that I gravitated towards, being in San Diego, with the military connection we have and the ability to go out and meet some of those guys and get involved,” Musgrove said.

“We’ve met a handful of Navy SEALs, and taken trips out onto some of the ships that are out at sea, and seeing the experience of what those guys are going through daily. It’s really cool to be a part of, so it’s something that I naturally gravitated towards.”

Musgrove will make his 12th start of the season on Sunday in Denver, part of a campaign that has been interrupted twice by trips to the injured list because of right elbow inflammation.

Now that he is back with the Padres, manager Mike Shildt said Musgrove continues to show his leadership through his actions on and off the field.

“Joe’s one of these guys that brings people up. He’s just a tremendous leader and person,” said Shildt, who has been a staunch supporter of Musgrove’s ever since he took over as the Padres manager in the offseason. “He’s able to do that without playing, and now that he’s back physically contributing, he’s only going to continue to make it even better.”

While he’s on the mound on Sunday, Musgrove hopes that he can not only help the Padres keep their winning ways going (entering Sunday, San Diego has gone 20-5 since the All-Star Break, an .800 winning percentage which is the best in baseball over that span) but also call attention to a cause that is not only important to him, but he knows was also important to Seidler as well.

“If people see it (the cleats), maybe they will look it up online and see what they’re all about and make donations of their own,” Musgrove said. “I know we plan to auction the cleats off after tomorrow’s game, and donate that money.

“It’s a simple way to honor a really good cause.”

Musgrove isn’t the only Padres player wearing cleats that will help one of the Peter Seidler Legacy Projects. All-Star third baseman Manny Machado has donned cleats supporting the San Diego Rescue Mission, including the South County Lighthouse, the first of the Peter Seidler Legacy Projects.

On their feet and in their hearts, Seidler’s impact on the Padres and the city of San Diego continues to shine, and perhaps even a little brighter during Players’ Weekend.