NL West
San Diego Padres
Petco Park · San Diego
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team in the National League West division.
NL West Rivalry
Padres–Giants
California's coastal NL West feud
The Padres and Giants have shared the National League West since San Diego entered the majors in 1969, making them divisional neighbors for the franchise's entire existence. The rivalry is driven by California geography and decades of jostling within the same division.
The Rivalry
When San Diego joined the National League as an expansion club in 1969, it was slotted into the new NL West alongside the long-established San Francisco Giants. The Giants, a franchise dating to the 19th century, entered the relationship with far deeper history, and that imbalance showed early. For years the matchup lacked the heat of San Diego's feud with Los Angeles, functioning more as a steady in-state rivalry. Its sharpest chapters came in tight division races: the Giants twice clinched the NL West by beating the Padres on the regular season's final day, in 2010 and again in 2021. The 2020s brought renewed intensity as both clubs spent heavily.
What's at Stake
Every Padres-Giants series is an NL West game, so results shape a division that has become a yearly gauntlet alongside the Dodgers. The two clubs have never met in the postseason, which leaves the regular season carrying the full weight of the rivalry. San Diego and San Francisco fans share a state and a freeway, fueling well-traveled crowds.
Famous Moments
- 1969 — San Francisco shut out the expansion Padres 8-0 in the first meeting between the franchises.
- 2010 — San Francisco beat San Diego 3-0 on the season's final day to clinch the NL West.
- 2021 — San Francisco again clinched the NL West by beating San Diego, delivering a franchise-record 107th win.
- 1998 — San Diego won 98 games to take the NL West and finished well ahead of the second-place Giants.
The Two Teams
Plan the Trip
Padres-Giants weekends offer two of the most scenic settings in baseball. San Diego's Petco Park sits in the lively downtown Gaslamp Quarter under near-perfect weather, while San Francisco's Oracle Park frames the bay with its iconic right-field wall and McCovey Cove kayakers. The California corridor is easy to travel, making a two-city ballpark trip a rewarding bucket-list itinerary.
Frequently Asked Questions: Padres–Giants
The two teams first met in 1969. The Padres and Giants have shared the National League West since San Diego entered the majors in 1969, making them divisional neighbors for the franchise's entire existence. The rivalry is driven by California geography and decades of jostling within the same division.
Every Padres-Giants series is an NL West game, so results shape a division that has become a yearly gauntlet alongside the Dodgers. The two clubs have never met in the postseason, which leaves the regular season carrying the full weight of the rivalry. San Diego and San Francisco fans share a state and a freeway, fueling well-traveled crowds.
Yes — as NL West division rivals they face off many times across the 2026 MLB season.
San Diego Padres host at Petco Park in San Diego; San Francisco Giants play at Oracle Park in San Francisco.
