Postseason baseball in San Diego hasn't been the most common occurrence over the years. The Padres have just seven playoff appearances in their 54-year history, lagging far behind cross-state rivals the Dodgers (36 appearances) and Giants (27 appearances).
But with their impressive showing in the 2022 MLB postseason, the Friars find themselves on the cusp of history. Another World Series appearance is in their sights, one that would make all of the moving and shaking of this past season's trade deadline worth it.
So with San Diego on a date with destiny, it seems as good a time as any to review its past appearances in the Fall Classic. Here's what you need to know about the Padres' past experiences in the World Series.
Have the Padres won a World Series?
The Padres have never won a World Series. They have, however, reached the Fall Classic on two separate occasions — not a terrible rate for a team that has only earned a postseason berth five other times in its history.
When is the last time Padres went to a World Series?
The last time San Diego reached the World Series was in 1998. Led by the impressive bat of Greg Vaughn and the golden arm of Kevin Brown, the Friars won 98 games in the regular season to capture the NL West crown. San Diego then breezed past the Astros and Braves before falling via four-game sweep to the Yankees.
Padres World Series appearances
The Friars have played in two World Series, both coinciding with Tony Gwynn's career, apt given his legendary nickname — Mr. Padre. Their first appearance came in 1984. A 24-year old Gwynn, taking part in his first full MLB season, took the Padres as far as he could, falling just short in a 4-1 to the Tigers.
The Yankees' sweep of the Padres back in 1998 represents the closest San Diego has come to a title in over two decades.
| Date | Opponent | Result | MVP |
| 1984 | Tigers | Tigers (4-1) | Alan Trammell |
| 1998 | Yankees | Yankees (4-0) | Scott Brosius |
MLB teams without a World Series
San Diego is not the only MLB team to share the misery of being ringless. It's fairly common around the league, with six teams having failed to capture the Commissioner's Trophy.
The six teams are as follows:
| Team | No. of appearances |
| Rangers | 2 |
| Padres | 2 |
| Rays | 2 |
| Rockies | 1 |
| Brewers | 1 |
| Mariners | 0 |
Between those six teams, they have combined for eight trips to the World Series. Perhaps the Padres can knock themselves off of the list with a positive showing in the Fall Classic.
