The Padres and Mariners will be pursuing more than their respective division titles when they meet this year.
Beginning this season, the teams said Friday, they will join rock star Eddie Vedder in creating the real Vedder Cup, the prize for the victor in their six-game season series.
Fans have playfully referred to the Padres vs. Mariners series as the Vedder Cup for years, in honor of the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer and multi-Grammy Award winner, a one-time resident of both San Diego and Seattle.
Officially introducing The Vedder Cup! ?
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) March 14, 2025
We’re partnering with the @Padres and Rock & Roll HOFer @eddievedder to designate our season series as the Vedder Cup – each year, the winner will take home the Vedder Cup trophy designed by Eddie himself!
? https://t.co/c5Kvv0zBCL pic.twitter.com/zA7OdcfswK
The winner of the season series will take home the Vedder Cup trophy, featuring a guitar provided by Vedder. This year the Padres and Mariners will play May 16-18 in San Diego and Aug. 25-27 in Seattle.
As part of the annual series, the teams will join in supporting the EB Research Partnership, a charity co-founded by Eddie and Jill Vedder to fund research to discover treatments and cures for Epidermolysis Bullosa, a rare genetic condition that causes skin damage, including blistering and tearing.
The Vedder Cup “celebrates the unique connection between our cities through the rock legend and Pearl Jam frontman,” said Padres CEO Erik Greupner in a news release. “This West Coast showdown will create some cool, fun, and memorable moments for our fans while bringing meaningful awareness to EB research.”
This Friday is #RareDiseaseDay, and @EBResearch needs your help to spread awareness of EB and donate toward the critical research that gets us closer to a cure.
— Eddie Vedder (@eddievedder) February 28, 2025
No action we take and no dollar amount is too small to make a difference in the lives of those facing EB each day. pic.twitter.com/w4DStmwxUx
Fans can look forward to a Vedder Cup Series Theme Game on May 17 in Game 2 of their three-game set with Seattle at Petco Park, and special merchandise too, available in both San Diego and Seattle.
Of course, when there’s a prize at stake, there must be tiebreakers, and one is a nod to Vedder. If the clubs share an even run differential in the season series, the first tiebreaker, then the team with the highest exit velocity – EV, get it? –recorded on a hit will walk away with the Vedder Cup.
