Padres' Craig Stammen gets shaky job security update from MLB insider

The San Diego Padres hired Craig Stammen as their manager this offseason, instead of rolling with Albert Pujols, who seemed to have gained some traction nearing the end of their search.

As of August 17, the Padres are in a postseason spot and have a real chance to make it this year. But it's a close race, and the team collapsing down the stretch can't be ruled out due to how close this race is.

If such a collapse happens, Stammen's job might be at risk, as USA Today MLB insider Bob Nightengale is reporting that the Padres could make Stammen the "fall guy" if this Padres team misses the postseason.

Padres could make Craig Stammen 'fall guy' if they miss postseason

"He signed a three-year contract in November. Yet, if the Padres miss the playoffs, someone needs to be the fall guy, and Stammen is A.J. Preller's seventh manager in 12 years since becoming GM and president of baseball operations," Nightengale writes.

This 2026 season is the first year of Stammen's managerial career. Through 125 games, the Padres are 67-58, sitting above .500, and owning one of the NL Wild Card spots.

The Padres are tied with the Philadelphia Phillies, but after dropping multiple series to them earlier in the year, the Phillies have the tiebreaker.

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But the only reason why that could pose a problem is that the Arizona Diamondbacks are just one game back of the Padres and Phillies, and if both of those clubs get hot and the Padres take a step back, they could miss the postseason.

Considering that A.J. Preller bought at the trade deadline again, landing Robbie Ray and Casey Mize to dramatically improve the rotation, missing the playoffs would be a disastrous scenario.

But with how close this race is, it's a real possibility. If the Padres were to miss the postseason, Nightengale believes that Stammen, even though it's his first season, could be fired by the Padres.

It might seem a bit unfair, but Stammen could be managing for his job down the stretch as the Padres fight for a postseason spot this season. 

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