Yes, we know.

Again, we know.

The San Diego Padres have been in existence for over a half-century, so how can we rank a player regardless of position at all? 

Here is how.

Kevin Brown's single season in San Diego is the greatest in franchise history and is so by far.

Let’s repeat it.

Yes, we know.

Again, we know.

The Padres have had Cy Young winners, and Brown was not one of them.   Brown is also a player who only was a Padre for one year, but in terms of bWAR and other advanced metrics, he exceeds that of many other San Diego Pitchers who played far longer with the team.  

The year in question was 1998, the year after he was traded from the Florida Marlins, who won the 1997 World Series and held a fire sale to get rid of all their stars.  It can be argued (and we have) that the Marlins do not win the World Series without Brown, and we will make the same statement that San Diego does not win the 1998 Pennant without Brown.  

In 1998, Brown led the NL in bWAR for Pitchers (8.6) and FIP (2.23), won 16 Games, and was second in WHIP (1.066), ERA (2.38), and Strikeouts (257).  The Padres advanced to the World Series, and Brown was great over his first two playoff series, though his World Series was not great.  He didn't win the Cy Young, but TSN named him the Pitcher of the Year.

Brown left the Padres as a Free Agent for the Dodgers, and his brief but brilliant stay in San Diego ended.

Kevin Brown was only with the Marlins for two seasons, but over Brown's excellent career, it was arguably the best back-to-back campaign that he had.

An All-Star with Texas in 1992, Brown signed with Baltimore for one year in 1995 before joining Florida the following season.  Brown rewarded the Marlins with a spectacular year, posting a 17-11 record while leading the NL in ERA (1.89), 215 (ERA+), and WHIP (0.944), and he was the runner-up for the Cy Young.  The Marlins ace had another great year in 1997 (16-8, 2.69 ERA & 205 SO) and was an All-Star for the second year in a row.  Largely off of the arm of Brown, the Marlins won the Pennant and shocked the baseball world by winning the World Series.  Brown did not have a good Series (0-2 8.18 ERA), but without his contributions, the team never would have made it to the playoffs.

After the Marlins won it all, they traded many of the critical components that won them the title, including Brown (to San Diego), who had one year left in his contract.  Brown had a 33-19 record with a 2.83 ERA with the Marlins.

While Kevin Brown was known for what he did after he left the Texas Rangers, he was still a very good Starting Pitcher who was not only an All-Star in 1992, but led the American League in Wins that season.  Brown was known for his efficient play, which was not necessarily appreciated in Arlington.  Brown won 78 Games against 64 Losses with 742 Strikeouts.

A lot of baseball players take flak for their high salaries. One of those who did was Kevin Brown who was the first man in professional baseball to sign a contract worth $100 Million. Sadly for Brown, his deterioration rendered that one of the worst contracts as during the final years of his career he was not a player who should have been amongst the games highest paid.