San Diego

San Diego Padres New 1st Baseman Eric Hosmer to Wear #30

"It was fun to get the vision and see where San Diego is trying to lead this young group of guys," Eric Hosmer said.

San Diego Padres introduced Eric Hosmer Tuesday, their new first baseman.

"It was fun to get the vision and see where San Diego is trying to lead this young group of guys," Eric Hosmer said.

Hosmer has agreed to a deal with the Padres. Hosmer's deal is for eight years for $144 million, with an opt-out clause after five years, according to multiple reports. 

The 28-year-old Hosmer has a .284 average with 127 home runs and 566 RBIs in 1,048 games in his six-year major league career. Last season, Hosmer batted .318 with 25 home runs.

Teammates have praised Hosmer as a leader in the locker room, and that as much as anything was valued by the Padres organization.

Hosmer said he is happy to serve as a leader to younger athletes coming up through the Padres farm system. 

โ€œA lot of excitement to get into the locker room and open these guysโ€™ eyes up and let them know how good they are,โ€ Hosmer said. 

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He will wear No. 30 in San Diego to honor former teammate Yordano Ventura. The former Kansas City Royal player was killed in January 2017 in a car crash in the Dominican Republic. 

He said he spoke with third baseman coach Glenn Hoffman who previously wore the number. 

โ€œHoff was more than open to let me carry on that number. I told him I will wear it with pride each and every day,โ€ Hosmer said.

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The Padres did some extensive background work to see how Hosmer fits from a baseball and business perspective with an organization not known for being big spenders the last couple of years. They received a great deal of positive feedback from a number of scouts and baseball personnel people, general manager A.J. Preller said. 

"Eric as a player brings a lot to the table. From an offensive standpoint, demonstrated an ability to hit for average, hit for power, get on base, he doesn't punch out, he's a two-way player," Preller said. "We put on a premium on all those things."

Padres single game tickets go on sale Thursday, Feb. 22.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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