Fastball

Popular Former Minnesota Twins Utility Man Joins Coaching Staff of San Diego Padres

Nick Punto, who spent parts of seven years with the Twins, has an unspecified role with the Padres.

Brady Farkas

Minnesota Twins third baseman Nick Punto fields a ground ball against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in 2010.
Minnesota Twins third baseman Nick Punto fields a ground ball against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in 2010. / Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images
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Former Minnesota Twins utility man Nick Punto has joined the coaching staff of the San Diego Padres, per a report from The Athletic's Dennis Lin.

Some non-ownership news: The Padres are adding former major leaguers Nick Punto and Robby Hammock to their coaching staff, sources tell @TheAthletic. Roles TBA. Ryan Barba, Mike Shildt's field coordinator last season, recently left the organization to join the Cardinals.

A 14-year veteran, Punto spent parts of seven years with the Twins. A popular player in his time, he was with Minnesota from 2004-2010. He hit .248 with the Twins and helped them get to the playoffs in 2006 and 2009. He stole 89 bases in a Twins uniform, pairing with other popular Twins players like Joe Mauer, Jacque Jones and Torii Hunter during his tenure.

In addition to the Twins, Punto also played with the St. Louis Cardinals, winning a World Series with them in 2011. In addition, he was with the Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers and Oakland Athletics.

The Padres are coming off a season in which they finished second in the National League West and advanced back to the playoffs. They beat the Atlanta Braves in the National League Wild Card series before losing against the Dodgers in the National League Division Series.

The Padres figure to be extremely strong again in 2025 and are one of the leaders in the clubhouse for Japanese free agent Roki Sasaki. He will reportedly make his decision after the International Signing Period begins on Jan. 15.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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