The San Diego Padres spent their off-day hosting a baseball clinic for more than 250 local children at Liga Olmeca fields in Mexico City. Players, coaches and executives led drills and signed autographs ahead of their MLB World Tour series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The event highlighted the team's community outreach efforts in the Mexican capital.
Players from the San Diego Padres arrived at the youth baseball fields near Liga Olmeca on Friday, their off-day before facing division rival Arizona Diamondbacks in the MLB World Tour’s Mexico City Series. About a dozen players, along with coaches and executives, engaged with children aged 8 to 14 and their parents in attendance. Longtime Spanish-language broadcaster Eduardo Ortega introduced the group to enthusiastic cheers from the crowd of over 250 kids. The children divided into groups for drills interspersed with autograph and photo sessions. Infielder Jake Cronenworth led some sessions rigorously, participating alongside the participants. Third baseman Manny Machado fielded numerous requests for signatures and pictures but also ran ground-ball drills. Slugger Gavin Sheets emphasized the importance of the day, saying, “This is a cool day for us and obviously for the kids. This is what it’s all about -- growing baseball. Coming to Mexico City and being a part of this is just as special as the games that we get to play this week.” Shortstop Xander Bogaerts added, “We were also kids at one point. I would’ve dreamed of having big league guys helping us out like this.” Cronenworth noted, “It’s pretty special. It’s so cool to see all the kids at different ages, all in love with the game of baseball. And all in love with us, which is awesome. It shows how far the Padres community goes, all the way down in Mexico City.” The Padres have played regular-season games in Mexico five times previously, marking their second visit to the capital, and have consistently prioritized such community initiatives.
