Former San Diego Padres pitcher Craig Stammen has been tapped as the club’s new manager after Mike Shildt retired following the end of the 2025 season.

The Padres announced on Thursday that Stammen has agreed to a three-year deal to become their manager.

Stammen spent the past two seasons working with San Diego’s baseball operations department and as an assistant on the MLB coaching staff. He was a relief pitcher for the Padres for six seasons from 2017 to ’22.

Shildt, in a surprise move, announced his retirement on Oct. 13 after just two seasons in San Diego. He cited the “severe toll on me mentally, physically and emotionally” as his reasons for stepping down at the age of 57.

Per USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale, the relationship between Shildt and Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller had become “strained” over the course of the 2025 season.

The Padres were successful in Shildt’s two seasons, going 183-141 in the regular season and making the playoffs both years. They pushed the Los Angeles Dodgers to five games in the 2024 NLDS, including holding a 2-1 series lead after three games.

Of the eight teams that had managerial vacancies this offseason, the Padres were among the most appealing from that group. They are a ready-made playoff contender with one bonafide superstar in Fernando Tatis Jr. and another with superstar potential in Jackson Merrill, who will be looking to rebound in 2026 coming off an injury-plagued season.

There is work for Preller and the front office to do this offseason with the pitching staff, particularly the starting rotation. Dylan Cease is set to become a free agent. Yu Darvish, who posted a career-high 5.38 ERA in 2025, is at the tail end of his career going into his age-39 season.

One thing about Preller, though, is he won’t be afraid to make aggressive moves if there’s a player he really wants. The Padres made the biggest deal of the trade deadline to acquire Mason Miller from the Athletics.

Even with the Padres not looking to spend as much as they were in 2022 and 2023, ownership has continued to show a willingness to exceed the collective bargaining tax in pursuit of a championship.

Stammen will certainly be under pressure to help get the Padres over the hump in the playoffs after their recent disappointments, but Preller and the front office will provide plenty of talent on the field to help them get there.