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Missions, Padres extend player development contract

San Antonio MissionsAnother PDC to report: the San Antonio Missions (Class AA; Texas League) and the San Diego Padres extended their player development contract for two more years, through 2016.

“Our partnership with the Missions is crucial to our success at the Major League level,” said new San Diego Padres Executive Vice President/General Manager A.J. Preller. “We look forward to continuing to develop players through the culture of winning that San Antonio has established.”

“We’re very excited to be renewing with the Padres for another two seasons,” said Missions’ President Burl Yarbrough. “It’s been a great partnership with San Diego, resulting in three Texas League championships. The future looks bright with the success of some of the lower levels of the system. We’re looking forward to working with A.J. Preller, who did a wonderful job developing and scouting players during his tenure with the Texas Rangers.”

In eight seasons as San Diego’s Double-A affiliate, the Missions have been to the playoffs five times and have won three TL championships (2007, 2011 and 2013). Though San Antonio missed out on the postseason in 2014, the club sent eight players up to San Diego, including infielder Cory Spangenberg, who in just his second Major League game last night, gave San Diego a 2-1 win over Arizona with a pinch-hit, walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth. Spangenberg became the first player in Padres history to hit a walk-off homer within his first two career games.

“We are thrilled to continue this partnership with what has been an important franchise in the Texas League,” said Vice President, Player Development Randy Smith. “The great relationship the Padres have had with the Missions is thanks in large part to working with the Elmore family and Burl Yarbrough. We look forward to continuing success for the Missions and working together to develop quality Major League players.”

Here’s a look at the current affiliate status in Minor League Baseball.

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