The Padres and pitching coach Ruben Niebla have finalized a new multi-year deal, reports Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union Tribune on X. 2024 was the final year of his previous contract but the two sides worked out a new pact to keep their relationship going, though the exact length of the new pact is unclear.
Niebla, 53 in December, was hired by the Padres going into 2022 after spending many years in the Guardians organization. The Friars have generally been successful in that time. They won 89 games in 2022 and made the playoffs, their first time doing so in a full season since 2006. They had a bit of a dip in 2023, falling to 82-80, but were back in the playoffs in 2024 with a 93-69 showing.
The pitching has generally been good in that time, with the club having a collective 3.80 earned run average over the past three seasons, good enough to get into the top 10 in the majors for that period. That’s despite some notable roster churn, as Sean Manaea and Mike Clevinger departed after 2022 before Blake Snell, Seth Lugo, Nick Martinez, Josh Hader and Michael Wacha departed after 2023.
It’s always tough to separate player performance from the contributions of a coach, but Niebla has enough respect in the game that he’s been considered for managerial openings. However, the Padres clearly wanted to have him back as the pitching coach. President of baseball operations A.J. Preller said this week that the club wanted to “reward the staff” that been part of the club’s recent success, per Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union-Tribune on X.
Once again, the Padres will be challenged on the pitching front going into next year. Joe Musgrove recently underwent Tommy John surgery and will miss all of 2025, blowing a big hole in the rotation. They still have a strong front three of Dylan Cease, Michael King and Yu Darvish but they don’t really have established options beyond that trio and both Cease and King are slated for free agency after 2025.
Changes are surely coming. The budget may be tight but Preller is often one of the most aggressive executives on the trade market. Though the roster may get shaken up in the coming months, the Friars can go into 2025 knowing the pitching coach won’t change.
Yes!!!
Baseball is sure popular in San Diego. I love seeing the daily overflow crowds of 40,000+ at Petco.
Dodgers fans who can’t afford Dodgers tickets.
Why do half of the fans at Dodger’s home games look like they just got out of San Quentin??
I’m a police officer so I know criminals when I see them and Dodger Stadium is filled to the brim with them.
“Yeah essay, those Dodgers mad good holmes!”
Why do half..got out of San Quentin”…Because they just got out of San Quentin(or maybe Folsom prison) prison. You’d look that way too, if you just got out of San Quentin.
Why are Dodger fans going to Petco to watch the Padres play the Pirates and Marlins?
Cause they are band wagon fans
Congratulations Ruben N-word!
– Carl Winslow
Well deserved for a great pitching coach, and he’s named after the 4th best sandwich
All this while Steve “Ham & Cheese” Brooks can’t get a sniff at a MLB coaching job.
Niebla is also the name of a sandwich?
Driveline and Tread actually charge for their garbage sliders which are Roger Beshens Football Sliders. Roger Beshens football slider are prepped better with the special sauce. Did you see the pictures on Roger Beshens Facebook with Stromy?
Ruben, got it. Yes I feel dumb now.
Where do I find pitching coach advanced metrics?
Here’s all you need to know.
Teach ALL the pitchers the Roger Beshens Football Slider, tell the pitcher how to shape that slider, it’s not needed but these young pitchers like to read the horizontal, Vertical…metrics so that makes it easier for them to understand but certainly not needed. Guidry, Carlton, didn’t need this information. Roger Beshens just taught Strom key techniques to his football slider. Many throw a basic RBFS that are watered down.
Good news, Roger Beshens just posted on his Facebook his interaction with Brent Strom at the Dbacks clubhouse showing a never learned technique. Ryne Nelson soon was shaping the RB Football Slider much better.
Okay Roger thanks for the heads up!
Niebla and Matt Blake back in 2018 were nothing because they didn’t know the Roger Beshens Football Slider yet. In May 2018 Roger Beshens was teaching Glasnow in Pitt along with Musgrove, Taillon, along with Keller and Holmes in Indy and Altoona. The Rays only wanted Glasnow cause he was throwing the unknown Roger Beshens Football slider in June 2018 and that’s why they did the Archer trade. Bendix was nothing at that time. It all comes to learning the Roger Beshens Football SLider. When Strom has Beshens at the Dbacks clubhouse in May 2024 that’s a big deal;. Pictures are on his Facebook page.
It’s amazing the power struggles in these MLB organizations to implement the Roger Beshens Football Slider. The front office and analytics in some organizations overrule the pitching coach. Not Good. There are internal private conversations with the pitcher and pitching coach that they don’t want to get out. So the analysts look at the metrics not knowing there is development going on in bullpen sessions and games and they interfere with the process. That’s why the world needs to learn the Roger Beshens football slider and stop the madness, stop the injuries. Stop the Sweeper and Gyro nonsense. It’s a slider. There are two different sliders the traditional and the RB football slider. The Good think is Roger was at the Dbacks Clubhouse showing Strom techniques to his slider and it helped Nelson, some dback pitchers didn’t want to join the RB Football Slider club.
Lets go goose!
“It’s always tough to separate player performance from the contributions of a coach”…love the cut and paste job from every other coaching signing post on this site!
Excellent, Smithers!!!
Yes! Preller locking up the coaching staff is great news. Now go get a LH starting pitcher and a catcher.