The San Diego Padres are turning the page in 2026 with a new skipper at the helm - and if you ask Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, that change might bring a little less heat to one of baseball’s most intense rivalries.
As pitchers and catchers begin reporting to spring training in Glendale, Arizona, Roberts was asked about the Padres’ new manager, Craig Stammen, and whether their dugout dynamic might mirror some of the more fiery interactions Roberts has had with San Diego managers in the past.
“I’m not going to butt heads with Stammen,” Roberts said. “No way. I just don’t see that happening.”
That’s a notable shift in tone, especially given the history between Roberts and the Padres over the last few seasons - a rivalry that’s flared up more than once, both on the scoreboard and in the moments between the lines.
Flashback: Roberts and the Padres’ Fireworks
The tension between the two clubs reached a boiling point last June, when Roberts was ejected from a game on June 17 after Shohei Ohtani was drilled in the leg by a fastball. The pitch came just an inning after Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. had been hit, and things escalated quickly. Umpires issued warnings to both teams, but Roberts wasn’t having it - confronting the officiating crew and getting tossed in the process.
The bad blood didn’t stop there.
Just three days later, both Ohtani and Tatis were hit again in a game that saw the benches clear. Roberts and then-Padres manager Mike Shildt had words, and Shildt later seemed to acknowledge that Ohtani’s HBP was a direct response to the earlier pitch that hit Tatis.
That kind of back-and-forth has been part of the Southern California rivalry’s edge in recent years - a battle not just of talent, but of tempers.
A New Chapter With Craig Stammen
Enter Craig Stammen, a former Padres reliever who spent the last six years of his career in San Diego and is now stepping into the manager’s role - his first coaching job at any level. The hire raised some eyebrows across the league, but Roberts sees the logic behind it.
“I was surprised in the sense of, he hasn’t coached before,” Roberts said. “But not surprised with the respect he has in the clubhouse, the game, and being familiar with the organization. Great hire.”
That respect goes a long way in a clubhouse, and Stammen isn’t coming in to simply manage personalities - he’s here to compete.
“We’re going to compete,” Stammen said earlier this offseason. “No doubt about that.
We’re going to give them our best shot. That’s what we’ll do every year, that’s what we’re going to do every year.”
Rivalry Reset?
While the personalities in the dugouts may be shifting, don’t expect the competition between the Padres and Dodgers to cool off anytime soon. These two clubs share more than just a division - they share history, geography, and a growing list of on-field battles that have made their matchups must-watch baseball.
But with Stammen now steering the ship in San Diego, and Roberts expressing optimism about a more even-keeled relationship, this chapter of the rivalry could look a little different - less drama, perhaps, but no less intensity.
After all, as Stammen made clear, the Padres aren’t backing down.
And if the past few seasons are any indication, neither are the Dodgers.