Padres News: Ryan Weathers Felt the Nerves Facing the Team that Drafted Him
Dealt away at the deadline to Miami, former Padres pitcher Ryan Weathers was rudely welcomed back to Petco Park by his old team in his most recent start.
In a disappointing start against his former employer, Weathers mentioned some complicated feelings in pitching against his old teammates and his thoughts about his time in San Diego overall.
“I think just a lot of nerves, a lot of it still being fresh,” Weathers said after last night’s game. “It’s been 20 days — three weeks — since I’ve been traded. There were just a lot of emotions today. It was just a weird outing. … I got drafted when I was 18. I was here for 2½ years, the organization for six. There’s just a lot of emotions that went into today. It was kind of tough to lock it in.”
It wasn't exactly the best first impression for Weathers in his return to face the Padres for the first time since being traded for Garrett Cooper from the Marlins.
Giving up five walks in his first outing for the Fish, Weathers surrendered five runs in under four innings of work that saw his seasonal ERA climb to over 7 on the season.
A highly touted high school product, Weathers' six year career with the Padres organization simply did not pan out relative to his draft pedigree.
Making trades in the league remind us that this is indeed a business, but stories like Weathers show the human side of athlete deals.
Describing his mixed emotions in giving up a home run to former teammate Ha Seong Kim, Weathers' rude awakening back to Petco added to a personally challenging season for him on and off the field.
Though we wish him well in his new destination, San Diego was the beneficiary of one of their own coming back.
