Padres manager Mike Shildt is retiring, citing a “huge toll” on the job

Mike Shildt is retiring as manager of the San Diego Padres with two years remaining on his contract, saying, “The suffering of the baseball season has taken a toll on me mentally, physically and emotionally.”

The 57-year-old Shildt informed the team on Saturday that he was retiring, nine days after the Padres were eliminated by the Chicago Cubs in a tense three-game series. He added that he made the decision on his own.

Shildt led the Padres to the postseason in each of the two seasons he managed the franchise. The club confirmed Shildt’s decision on Monday.

“While it has always been about serving others, it is time for me to take care of myself and go out on my terms,” Schildt said in a statement. Given to the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I gave every fiber of my being to help realize Peter Seidler’s vision of bringing a World Series to San Diego.

“We failed to achieve the ultimate goal, but I am proud of what the players, the coaching staff and the organization were able to achieve in the past two seasons.”

Shildt went 183-141 as manager in San Diego. The Padres won 90 games this season and finished second in the NL West before being eliminated by the Cubs.

“I am very grateful to our players,” Shildt said in his statement. “San Diego is truly proud of our Padres players. They are a class-acting group, dedicated to each other and to the common goal of winning a World Series. I love our players and will miss them very much!!

“After 34 years of devoting myself to the rigors of coaching and management, I can happily look back on my two primary goals: helping players make the most of their God-given abilities and become better men. And also winning games.”

Before joining the Padres organization in early 2022 as a player development coach, Shildt was manager of the St. Louis Cardinals from 2018-2021, posting a record-setting home run in each of his three full seasons. He was named NL Manager of the Year in 2019 after leading the Cards to 91 wins and an NL Central title.

“We would like to congratulate Mike on his successful career and thank him for his significant contributions to the Padres and the San Diego community over the past four years,” Padres general manager AJ Preller wrote as part of a statement.

Preller added that the search for a new coach for the Padres “will begin immediately with the goal of winning the World Series in 2026.”

The Padres’ new manager will be the eighth person to lead the dugout since Preller fired Bud Black in June 2015. The Dodgers, a San Diego County product, have been managed by Dave Roberts, their main rival, a San Diego County product, since November 2015.

San Diego became the eighth MLB team with a managerial opening and the ninth to change managers this season. Texas has already hired Skip Schumaker, but there are openings with the Padres, Angels, Braves, Orioles, Twins, Giants, Nationals and Rockies.

Information from Alden Gonzalez of ESPN and the Associated Press was used in this report.