Former Padre Randy Jones laughs during an interview with Trevor Hoffman (left) and Mark Loretta. (File photo by Chris Stone/Times of San Diego)
Padres icon Randy Jones, a beloved left-hander who was the first San Diego Padres pitcher to win the coveted Cy Young award, died Tuesday.
Jones was 75.
“Randy was a cornerstone of our franchise,” the San Diego Padres said in a post. “The CY Young Award winner, Padres Hall of Famer, and tremendous community ambassador, was a giant in our lives and will be greatly missed.”
With deep sorrow and heavy hearts, the Padres mourn the passing of our beloved left-hander, Randy Jones. Randy was a cornerstone of our franchise. The CY Young Award winner, Padres Hall of Famer, and tremendous community ambassador, was a giant in our lives and will be greatly… pic.twitter.com/AwXWb92aCD
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) November 19, 2025
Jones was a star for reasons that went beyond his pitching ability. According to MLB.com, he appealed to fans because of his unassuming appearance — for example, a vintage 1970s “man-perm” was his trademark — and his even more unassuming left-handed pitches, which even struck out the legendary Pete Rose.
“I’d give Pete that 74 mph sinker and he’d be over the top of it with a groundball to short, or grounder to second,” Jones told a crowd in 2019.
“One thing Pete never realized was that I never threw him a slider. Didn’t have to. One time, before a home game against the Reds on Sunday afternoon, Pete decided to hit left-handed against me that day,” The Daily Jeffersonian reported he said at the time.
“I said to him before the game, ‘You sure you want to do this?’ Rose replied, ‘Just pitch to me.’ I pitched him three sliders on the outside corner and he never took the bat off his shoulder as I struck him out. I look over to the Reds’ bench and I see (Manager) Sparky Anderson and Johnny Bench laughing as Pete walked by them saying ‘I didn’t know he had a slider.’”
For much of Jones’ time in San Diego, the games in which he pitched gave the Padres their best chance of winning.
That was especially true in his All-Star seasons of 1975 and ’76, when Jones’ starts became a sensation. During his pregame stroll to the bullpen, fans would rise to their feet applauding, louder with every step. In 1976, attendance averaged 27,400 for his 21 home starts.
The Padres averaged 15,769 on their other home dates, MLB.com said.
The team did not release his cause of death, but Jones — a longtime user of chewing tobacco — was a survivor of throat cancer.
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