The jersey that Blake Snell sent Ruben Niebla after winning the 2023 NL Cy Young Award stands out among those that the Padres’ pitching coach has collected from pupils over his years in baseball.

It’s hard to top his first one. Niebla was 11-year-old growing up a stone’s throw from the border in Calexico when he started his collection. The first jersey was a “cheap one,” Niebla said, but the name of the left-handed pitcher from Sonora, Mexico, on the back was priceless:

Fernando Valenzuela.

“He revolutionized the game for Hispanics,” Niebla said.

Although he later pitched in the Dodgers organization, Niebla did not grow up a Dodgers fan. He wore the jersey maybe a handful of times before it got tucked away and ultimately lost somewhere along his journey to the majors.

But a good story lives forever, and Niebla cherishes his Valenzuela story infinitely more than that first jersey.

It was 2010. Niebla had been hired as a pitching coach for the Aguilas de Mexicali and the team’s general manager floored him when he gave Niebla arguably the greatest asset a coach could have. Valenzuela, the GM said, could be Niebla’s assistant.

One problem: Niebla learned quickly that Valenzuela wasn’t exactly there for Screwball 101.

“We would have meetings and I would be like, ‘Fernando do you have anything?’ And Fernando never had anything,” Niebla said with a laugh. “I told him one day, I was like, ‘I’m a minor league pitching coach and you’re a legend. You realize that, right? These guys would rather hear from you than from me.’

“He goes, ‘Ruben, I’m here to hug people and kiss the babies.’”

An elder statesman in the Padres bullpen, the 33-year-old Jason Adam has his share of stories, but he’s not yet in the collecting phase of his career. Perhaps he will be soon, because jerseys meant something to him as a kid. Among the first he ever got his hands on was a Champ Bailey jersey after his uncle turned him onto the Denver Broncos.

“He was a stud; he was so good,” said Adam, adding that he probably still has that jersey in storage. “It was the first one that I had that had the sewn-on number. It was like in fifth or sixth grade. I wanted it so bad.”

Rookie pitcher Ryan Bergert was a bit older — probably his high school days — when he got his first jersey. He grew up an hour away from Progressive Field and gravitated toward Cleveland star Francisco Lindor, whom he might face this year if he can return from the injured list in time for the Mets’ trip to Petco Park at the end of the month.

Likewise, the objects of native San Diegan Davin Morgan’s obsessions hit close to home: Tony Gwynn, of course, but also LaDainian Tomlinson.

“He was the only reason I started to watch football — him and (Antonio) Gates,” Morgan said. “The visor. As a kid, I was drawn in. Everybody tried to be like him, but nobody could be quite like him.”

The same is often said of the name of the back of the first jersey that Adrián Morejón owned — Lionel Messi — but we’re talking futbol now, not football.

“Soccer is very popular in Cuba,” Morejón said through interpreter Jorge Merlos. “I kind of looked up to him. He was my favorite player growing up.”

Todd Heap was not Jackson Merrill’s favorite player growing up. He wasn’t even a fan of the Baltimore Ravens. But Merrill lived in the area and was gifted the tight end’s jersey as a kid.

That’s one way to get a jersey. Or you can go to SoFi Field to see your favorite team visit the Los Angeles Rams and exchange jerseys with one of your favorite players (Dolphins receiver Jaylen Waddle) on the field.

“I like the Waddle, the celebration,” Merrill said, pausing in front of his locker to mimic the receiver’s touchdown celebration. “Good swag, too. Good confidence.”

Gavin Sheets feels the same way about Bobby Witt Jr.

But he doesn’t have a Witt jersey. He has a BW7 Victus bat from the Royals shortstop among the bats on a wall at home. The other bats he has collected, after getting enough time in the league and the nerve to ask while at first base, include Freddie Freeman, Luis Robert and Jose Abreu.

“I feel like jerseys are very generic,” Sheets said. “Obviously, the name’s on it, but I feel like bats are what make guys great. Everybody has a different model. In my opinion, bats are what make them great.”

Like Adam, Fernando Tatis Jr. might not get into collecting until he’s on his way out of the game.

The jerseys he hopes to get his hands on — Ronald Acuña Jr., Freddie Freeman, Aaron Judge, to start — will meet criteria that extends beyond the back of a baseball card.

“Definitely have a couple players on my mind,” Tatis said. “Guys that at least say hi and check in. Doesn’t have to be a relationship, but just a good guy and also a good player.”

Also a good story.

Nothing beats a good story.