San Diego Padres Mount Rushmore
By David Hill
Trevor Hoffman (1993-2008)
Most modern closers rely upon a blazing fastball to slam the door in the ninth. Trevor Hoffman became of the the great closers through his devastating changeup.
An icon with the San Diego Padres, Hoffman actually began his career as an infielder with the Reds. After showing mediocre results with the bat, he was converted to the mound, and showed enough promise for the Marlins to select him in the expansion draft. He stuck with the major league team in 1993, and was sent to the Padres as part of the Gary Sheffield trade later that year.
The deal certainly worked out well for San Diego. Hoffman became their closer the following year, and did not relinquish control of the job during his stay with the Padres. He was a six time All Star, had two second place finishes in the Cy Young vote, and twice won the NL Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year award. Hoffman led the league in saves twice, and had nine seasons with 40 or more saves.
With that success, it is understandable that his statistics would be impressive. Hoffman posted a 2.76 ERA and a 1.043 WHiP with the Padres, notching an incredible 552 saves. In his 952.1 innings, Hoffman struck out 1029 batters while issuing only 255 walks. He was a true artist on the mound, using deception to become one of the greatest closers of all time.
A future Hall of Famer, Trevor Hoffman dominated with the San Diego Padres. His changeup was the stuff of nightmares for the opposition.