“With Wil, I think there’s a side of him that players can easily relate to, because I do think he’ll be open and honest with them as far as the trials and tribulations that players go through,” Black said.
Myers endured his share of trials and tribulations in San Diego. A top Draft pick, a highly ranked prospect, a big contract -- and then … struggles. It was always plain to me that when Myers wasn’t performing, he wore it hard.
Maybe too hard, sometimes. Baseball can be an unforgiving game. For Myers, there are lessons from his career that he’d like to impart on the next generation of Padres. That’s why he got back into this (after spending the past two years mostly rotating between dad duty and the golf course).
“I think every player, when they’re done, thinks about some things that could have helped them in a time where they were struggling,” Myers said. “I think it would be cool to be able to express those things to some of the players.”
Myers hasn’t been back to San Diego since his departure after the 2022 season. (When the Reds came to town in ’23, Myers was sidelined with COVID.) He says he expects that to change this year, though he’s not sure when. In typical self-deprecating fashion, Myers noted, “it’d be great to come back; I don’t know if I’d be recognized.”
Oh, he’d be recognized. Myers never quite lived up to the lofty expectations. He’s still beloved for his tenure in San Diego. That tenure, of course, ended with a run to the NLCS in 2022 and an upset of the Dodgers in the NLDS -- after which Myers and his wife were spotted buying a round of drinks for everyone at a downtown bar.
Myers revealed last week that single round cost him $1,000 -- “obviously that’s nothing compared to being able to celebrate with those fans,” he said.
Indeed, Myers has seen a lot in San Diego, the good times and the bad. Black, too. I think both hires are fantastic from a baseball standpoint. But as much as anything, those two will bring some excellent perspective on the organization as a whole -- and how much it’s evolved over the past two decades.
