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鈥淚t is a decision that I thought about during the season and became at peace with over the last 10 days,鈥� Shildt wrote in a letter to the San Diego Union-Tribune and baseball writer Kevin Acee. 鈥淚 gave every fiber of my being to help achieve (late owner) Peter Seidler鈥檚 vision of bringing a World Series Championship to San Diego. ...

鈥淭he grind of the baseball season has taken a severe toll on me mentally, physically, and emotionally,鈥� the letter continues. 鈥淚t鈥檚 time I take care of myself and exit on my terms.鈥�

It is the second time in four years he鈥檚 had an abrupt departure from the role.

Shildt spent two years as manager with the Padres, and he managed the Cardinals for four years before that. His career record is 435-340. This Padres club, which finished 90-72, is the fifth consecutive club managed by Shildt to reach the postseason. The only time his club did not reach the postseason was the half-season he spent as the Cardinals鈥� interim manager in 2018.

If he receives votes for the National League Manager of the Year Award this year, he will have received at least one vote in every one of his six seasons as manager.

He won the award in 2019 with the Cardinals.

Two years later, just a day after Cardinals officials acknowledged they planned to approach Shildt about a contract extension, he was dismissed. The team advertised its unexpected move as 鈥減hilosophical differences,鈥� but sources and subsequent reporting revealed personality clashes and conflicts had surfaced in the days following the 2021 season that the front office felt could not be mended.

John Mozeliak, the president of baseball operations at the time, would later describe 鈥減ressure鈥� to make a move. Some of the clashes happened during the review of the season 鈥� Shildt, for example, was critical of how the team was losing former players like Chris Carpenter to other clubs 鈥� and there were other internal issues within the baseball operations staff that had simmered through the summer.

Stunned and shaken by the Cardinals鈥� decision, Shildt found a way back to baseball by working briefly in the commissioner鈥檚 office and also taking a role in the Padres鈥� front office. San Diego sought a coach with a reputation for improving fundamentals. One of his early tasks was working with Fernando Tatis Jr. as he shifted positions and readied for a return to the majors from suspension. Shildt was named manager after a shakeup in San Diego before the 2024 season.

The Padres confirmed Shildt鈥檚 decision and thanked him for his contributions on their social media feed and with a news release. Shildt, 57, had two more years remaining on his contract.

鈥淲e would like to congratulate Mike on a successful career and thank him for his significant contributions to the Padres and the San Diego community over the last four years, including consecutive 90-win seasons and two postseason appearances as manager,鈥� Padres president of baseball operations and general manager A.J. Preller said in a statement. 鈥淗is dedication and passion for the game of baseball will leave an impact on our organization and we wish him the best in his next chapter.

鈥淭he search for a new manager of the Padres will begin immediately.鈥�

Shildt鈥檚 retirement makes an eighth opening for manager in the majors.

Former Cardinals bench coach and leadoff hitter Skip Schumaker, who spent a few seasons with the Padres as a coach, was recently hired to manage the Texas Rangers. Albert Pujols is the leading candidate to manage the Los Angeles Angels. Allen Craig works in the Padres鈥� front office, and officials there have long wanted to lure him into uniform as a coach, though with a young family, he鈥檚 declined and remained in an adviser role that allows him to be involved with the major league team as well as player acquisitions.

Shildt began his professional career with the Cardinals as an area scout in 2003. Hired by Mozeliak, one of the players that Shildt scouted and signed was Oli Marmol, a shortstop out of the College of Charleston who would eventually replace Shildt as manager.

A native of North Carolina, Shildt worked his way up through the Cardinals organization as a highly regarded manager often tasked with overseeing some of the team鈥檚 top prospects, as he did for Class AA Springfield (Missouri). He saw in the Cardinals the kind of history and organizational commitment that he learned to value while working in the clubhouse for the Baltimore Orioles鈥� affiliate in Charlotte at the same time the Ripken family was so prominent. Shildt wore No. 8 as a nod to Cal Ripken Jr., whom he knew from working the clubhouse in the minors.

Shildt joined the Cardinals鈥� major league staff in 2017, and the next season, he was promoted to interim manager when Mike Matheny was fired at midseason.

The Cardinals dropped the interim tag shortly after the 2018 season ended.

In his four seasons as manager, the Cardinals went 252-199 for a .574 winning percentage. The Cardinals reached the 2019 National League Championship Series in his first full season as manager. They were eliminated by the Padres during 2020鈥檚 postseason tournament during the pandemic, and 2021 ended on a walk-off home run at Dodger Stadium in the one-game wild-card playoff against the Dodgers.

In his report on the retirement, Acee described Shildt in the clubhouse after the Cubs eliminated the Padres this month in the National League Wild Card Series: 鈥淗e spoke in a soft voice about the love he had for his players and the culture that had been built in two seasons. He was devastated and proud and tired. And he was done.鈥�

His letter to the newspaper echoed that sentiment.

鈥淚 move forward with a smile on my face,鈥� Shildt wrote, 鈥渃ontentment in my soul and genuine excitement for what God has next.鈥�