SAN DIEGO — The Padres are bringing two very familiar faces back to the organization.
Black spent parts of nine seasons as manager of the club from 2007-15 and still ranks as the second-winningest manager in franchise history behind only Bruce Bochy. After Black’s tenure, he managed the Rockies for nine seasons before he was dismissed as manager early in the 2025 season.
Myers, meanwhile, played for Black in 2015 and went on to spend eight total seasons with the club, tallying 771 hits and 134 home runs. He was a beloved figure on some rebuilding teams in San Diego, then an important role player as the Padres became a contender earlier this decade.
Black called his specific role “sort of a wide-ranging thing,” and the same will hold true for Myers — though Myers’ work will come mostly on the Minor League side.
“I’m going to be more a resource for some of the coaches, a resource for some of the players during the season, checking in on some guys, seeing how their cage work, seeing how their BPs are going,” Myers said. “I think every player, when they’re done, thinks about some things that could have helped them in a time where they were struggling. … I think it would be cool to be able to express those things to some of the players.”
As for Black, he said he was offered the role by general manager A.J. Preller and assistant GM Josh Stein after months of discussions, which started out very informally.
“My excitement grew, and my hope that we could get together for me to come back, and … it ended with us shaking hands and getting it done,” Black said. “Looking forward to working with A.J. and Josh, the baseball operations team, [manager] Craig [Stammen] and his staff, player development, scouting. The role will encompass a lot of things.”
Myers, meanwhile, says his primary focus will be working with the team’s Minor League hitters, traveling to the team’s affiliates once a month. If there’s one thing Myers wants to impart, he says it’s getting rid of wasted swings in the batting cage and batting practice.
Myers never formally announced his retirement, but for all intents and purposes, he called it a career after the 2023 season. He’s spent the past two years at his home in North Carolina and said he’d never considered a career in coaching until Preller invited him to the team’s instructional workouts in Arizona last September.
“Throwing BP in the cage, flipping balls, picking up balls — I never saw myself doing that until I saw myself in that situation and really enjoyed it,” Myers said.
Black, of course, was dismissed by Preller amid a disappointing 2015 season — Preller’s first full season as general manager. Black chalked that up to part of the business. The two have remained cordial since, and when Black was let go by the Rockies, it wasn’t long before Preller and Black started talking.
In a way, it’s fitting Black’s return coincides with Myers’ return as well. Myers was part of Preller’s 2014-15 offseason overhaul. And while it didn’t pay dividends that year, it effectively marked the start of this era of Padres baseball — the most successful era in the franchise’s history, with four playoff appearances in the past six seasons.
“What happened over the winter of 2014-15, it just continued,” Black said. “To see the growth of the organization, to see what’s happened at Petco, what’s happened with the fanbase, just the positive feel of the organization … it’s just been so impressive to see.”
As a former-pitcher-turned-manager, Black might also have insights for Stammen, who was hired earlier this winter to replace Mike Shildt. Black said he’d be happy to serve as a “sounding board” for Stammen moving forward.
As for Black’s own managerial career and a potential return at some future date …
“You never say never, but I feel good about where I am right now, and what I’m doing,” Black said. “It’s not at the forefront of my thinking process right now. I just want to jump into this role and help us achieve what we want to do. That’s get into the playoffs, get into the World Series and ultimately win the World Series.”
