Christian Villanueva is the focal point of every Friar faithful today and deservedly so. He single-handedly carried the San Diego Padres to their first win of the 2018 season.
Who is San Diego Padres third baseman Christian Villanueva?
Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, Christian Villanueva was signed as an international free agent by the Texas Rangers when he was only 17. Current San Diego Padres General Manager A.J.Preller, then a scout for the Texas Rangers, was instrumental in recruiting Villanueva. After a brief stint in Rangers’ farm system, including a 17 home run, 30 doubles, 32 stolen base season with their Single-A affiliate Hickory Crawdads, Villanueva was traded to the Cubs in 2012 (along with Kyle Hendricks) in exchange for Ryan Dempster.