Top 10 Padres defensive gems of the 2010s

SAN DIEGO -- Over the past decade, the Padres have seen a handful of excellent defenders pass through Petco Park. Naturally, those defenders left a legacy of some excellent defensive plays.

It's a near-impossible task to pin down the list of the decade’s top defensive gems to 10 plays. But these 10 plays are downright remarkable:

1) Upton goes way up, turns two
June 29, 2016

An inning earlier, B.J. Upton had launched one of the longest home runs in Petco Park history. Then he topped himself, making arguably the Padres' best play of the decade. On a deep drive by Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy, Upton scaled the center-field fence to rob a home run. Then, he delivered a 92 mph missile on two hops to first base.

2) Galvis spins and fires
July 12, 2018

Freddy Galvis only spent one season at shortstop for the Padres, but he made more than one case to be on this list. Galvis' best play in San Diego -- by far -- came against the Dodgers in mid-July. Justin Turner hit a chopper up the middle and Galvis made a diving play. In one motion, he spun 360 degrees while on both knees, then uncorked a strike to first base.

3) Manny being Manny
April 12, 2019

Manny Machado signed his record-setting 10-year contract with the Padres in February. It didn't take long for him to remind the organization exactly what it was paying for. In an early-April game at Chase Field, Machado ranged to his right on a chopper from Carson Kelly and made an excellent backhanded stop. Then, without setting his feet, he pivoted and sidearmed a ridiculous 151-foot throw from foul territory to first base. The reaction of reliever Adam Warren told the story. First baseman Eric Hosmer didn't even move his glove.

4) Venable saves the day
June 17, 2013

No play on this list had a bigger impact on its game than this one. With the Padres and Giants tied at 3 in the 12th, Juan Perez sent a deep drive to center field that seemed destined to plate the winning run (on second base at the time). Will Venable wasn't having it. He raced back and made a brilliant leaping catch as he fell onto the center-field warning track. The Padres would win the game an inning later, courtesy of Andrew Cashner's go-ahead squeeze bunt.

5) Hedges' ridiculous double play
April 12, 2018

Most of Austin Hedges' brilliant glovework goes unnoticed behind the plate. But every now and then, Hedges earns a spot on the highlight reel. Facing the Giants in an early-season tilt in 2018, Hedges made an absurd diving catch in foul territory on a Gregor Blanco bunt. He also had the presence of mind to fire a strike to first base from his backside, doubling off Brandon Crawford.

6) Denorfia robs Ibañez
June 24, 2011

From the start, this play seemed destined for disaster. Racing toward the center-field fence at full speed as he tracked down Raúl Ibañez's deep fly ball, Chris Denorfia had his back turned on the baseball and seemed headed for a major collision. Instead, he turned at the last possible second, lifted his glove and made a brilliant home run-robbing catch in front of the Phillies' bullpen.

7) Jumpman Tatis
Aug. 12, 2019

OK, so there are about eight Fernando Tatis Jr. catches that might apply here. But the signature moment from his brilliant rookie season came in August against the Rays. Jesús Aguilar lifted what appeared to be a single into shallow left field. Instead, Tatis went way up for an incredible leaping catch. As he went full stretch to make the play, Tatis spun toward the outfield grass -- a pose which serves as the lasting image from his first season in the big leagues.

8) Maybin scales the wall
Sept. 29, 2012

Cameron Maybin expertly patrolled the center-field gaps at Petco Park for four seasons. But the best play from his Padres tenure was a home run-robbing grab on a deep Xavier Nady drive during the season's final weekend in 2012. The Giants already led, 3-0, but Maybin ended the top of the first inning by scaling the center-field fence to take a homer away from Nady. It sparked a rally and a 7-3 Padres victory over the soon-to-be champs.

9) Headley turns three
June 10, 2010

Chase Headley's best defensive season came in 2012 when he took home the Padres' most recent Gold Glove Award. Two years prior, he also helped author the Padres' most recent triple play. Mets shortstop Rubén Tejada bounced a chopper toward third base. A quick-thinking Headley raced to the bag and fired to Lance Zawadzki at second, who threw to Adrián González at first for the triple play.

10) Nacho average catch
July 15, 2016

The final catch on this list might not have been a catch at all. Only Yangervis Solarte knows for sure. Facing the Giants in the first game after the All-Star break in 2016, Solarte ranged into foul territory chasing a popup from Ángel Pagán. He corralled the ball as he collided with the wall, then went tumbling into the stands. As he emerged, Solarte showed a nacho cheese-covered baseball to third-base ump Ed Hickox, who ruled Pagán out.