Last season, was Aaron Rowand’s first season with the San Francisco Giants. He had a batting average of .271, 57 runs, 37 doubles, 13 home runs, and 70 RBI in 152 games. Rowand ranked fifth for the Giant’s in batting average, third in hits, and second in both home runs and RBI. During the first half of the season, Rowand ranked among the National League leaders in a number of categories while being 1 of 5 players named to the All-Star Final Vote.

On May 25, 2008, Rowand hit the 100th home run of his career at Dolphin Stadium. At the beginning of the 2009 season, Rowand had his fourth career walk-off hit. Rowand is a National co-chair of the PCF Home Run Challenge.

Bruce Bochy was the manager of the San Diego Padres for twelve seasons from 1995 to 2006. During that time he led the Padres to four division titles: 1996, 1998, 2005, and 2006. In 1998, he led the Padres to a National League title and their first pennant since 1984, but fell short to the New York Yankees in the World Series. Due to his success, Bochy was named the 1996 National League Manager of the Year. He was officially named the manager of the San Francisco Giants on October 27, 2006 and will lead the Giants in the 2009 season.

Bochy also managed the 2004 and 2006 MLB All-Stars team in the MLB Japan All-Star Series.