How did the San Diego Padres get its name?

Answer 1

Since San Diego has Mission heritage (the churches build by Spanish monk Fr. Junipero Serra) they decided to use the Spanish name for father, which was Padre.

Answer 2

It was the name of a minor league Baseball team that played in San Diego years earlier. The name also reflected the roles that missionaries played in the development of California before statehood.

Answer 3

Barron Hilton, the hotel magnate, organized the team to start in the AFL in 1960 in Los Angeles. Fans were asked to submit names. The club's nickname was submitted by Gerald Courtney of Hollywood. Hilton selected 'Chargers' in part because it coincided with the arrival of the new Carte Blanche charge card.

Another view from Les Land:
For background purposes I was the first Business Manager of the Chargers- from inception -1960 thru their 1963 Championship season.

As regards the selection of the name, my recollection and understanding is that Barron Hilton selected it because he liked the USC cheer of "CHARGE", and was influenced to some extent by his friend Tom Eddy, who was a graduate of USC; Tom was Barron's front and leg-man during the early formative years. I have never heard Barron indicate that the name was derived because of the credit card name "Carte Blanche".

Barron Hilton was named to the Chargers Hall of Fame in 1980.

Answer 4

The San Diego Padres began as a minor league team playing in the Pacific Coast League. They decided to be called the Padres to honor the Catholic missionaries that began their quest up the California coast in San Diego. The term "Padre", is actually Spanish for the word "father", commonly used to refer to a priest.

Answer 5

It comes from a Mexican word meaning 'father'. So padres means fathers.

Answer 6

# Father. Used as a form of address for a priest in Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. # Informal. A military chaplain. # Chiefly British. A parson.