UPDATE: Pads Busy at the Deadline

July 31st. If your a GM then the day is circled on your calendar. Its the trading deadline for Major League Baseball and for the second year in a row, the Padres have made improvements to there bench in the 11th hour. A lot went on today so here is a quick recap:

- Padres trade minor leaguer Jon Link for INF/OF Rob Mackowiak from the White Sox. Mackowiak is batting .276 with 6 homeruns in limited work this year with the White Sox.

- Padres traded a player to be named or cash considerations for Morgan Ensberg. Morgan Ensberg was a popular name at the deadline a year ago but reportedly the Astros at the time wanted Scott Linebrink, a price the Padres were not willing to pay. Ensberg is two years removed from an All-Star season and a World Series but is recovering from a torn shoulder tendon at the end of last year. While healthy, he's numbers have dropped considerably. He appears to be a nice option to platoon Kouzmanoff and to have a bat off the bench.

- The Padres traded away left handed reliever Royce Ring today to the Braves for Wil Ledezma and minor leaguer Will Startup. Kevin Towers is hinting that the Padres will possible utilize Ledezma as a starter, indicating that one of the 3 roster moves the Padres will be required to make tomorrow will be to send Tim Stauffer down to Portland.

- The other two roster moves? Anyone's guess. Clay Hensley is probably not safe and will probably be sent down. The third spot is a bit tougher to figure. Wait and see for now I suppose.

- The Padres didn't stop there, firing hitting coach Merv Rettenmund. This is the second year in a row the Padres have fired their hitting coach. To replace him, former Friar Wally Joyner. I remember in '98 fans wearing Wally Joyner "hats" (caps that made everyone look bald, nice!) and he was immensely popular. Here's hoping he can get the team to hit, because without some offense, this team has little hope of making the playoffs in the ultra-competitive West.

- Not everyone on the team is happy with the bevy of moves the Padres have made (Linebrink = gone, Branyon = Gone, Hairston = in etc.) Trevor Hoffman is concerned about team chemistry: "It doesn't really serve a purpose, other than there's chaos in the clubhouse, and that's not a good thing, either." said Hoffman.

"Today's kind of caught a lot of people off guard,'' Hoffman said. "There's a bit of scrambling around, not really knowing what happened or why. I think it forces you to just kind of keep your head down and focus on what you can do to improve the club personally.''

- Huge series opener tonight against Arizona as the Padres sit 1/2 game back of Arizona and L.A.

Trading Deadline Approaches; Padres Look to Get Back on Track

A quick blog this morning as the trade deadline is now less than 6 hours away:

- Tony Gwynn's induction speech (more on this in a moment) lasted about 27 minutes on Sunday. That is almost the exact same amount of time as the Padres first inning against the Astros on Sunday in which the Padres scored 11 runs. Both events happened at the same time. Coincidence?

- Since the All-Star Break the Padres ERA has ballooned to over 5, including giving up 11 runs on Sunday to turn a laugher into a ballgame for a while. The ineffectiveness of Tim Stauffer once again may be the last straw the Padres organization has for this former first round draft pick. Reportedly, the Padres are looking for a starting pitcher but the pickings are slim. With no great option in the minors, the Padres may be looking at having to ride the likes of David Wells and Tim Stauffer and hoping for the best.

- The latest trade rumor is that the Padres are looking at acquiring either Mark Loretta or Mike Lamb to shore up the bench or to replace the struggling Marcus Giles at second. As the deadline approaches we shall see.

- This upcoming weekend the San Francisco Giants and you-know-who come to town. Here's hoping he hits 2 homeruns in L.A. first and doesn't save them for here.

- The Padres lie only 1/2 game out of first despite a sub-.500 record since the All-Star Break. The offense continues to struggle and it is these struggles that may account for the pitching staff's current ERA. The stress on keeping every game a shutout appears to be weighing on the staff. I still believe (read: hope) that the Padres hitters will get it going. Unfortunately, I have 4 months of the season to look at and tell me I'm wrong.

- Final thoughts on Tony Gwynn's induction. Great speech and a record crowd at Cooperstown over the weekend of 70,000. The previous high was 50,000 in 1999. Gwynn was composed and nailed the speech. At Petco Park, about 1500 fans, including myself, gathered in the Park at the Park to watch on the big screen. If you couldn't be in NY, Petco was the place to be. A great weekend for a great man. Congratulations to Tony Gwynn. I'll be seeing that plaque soon enough.

- Flurry of moves in the past few days: Russell Branyon release. Scott Hairston traded for from Arizona. Chris Young put on the DL retroactive to July 25th. Tim Stauffer recalled from Portland. Terrmel Sledge sent to Portland.

- Updates later today once the deadline passes.

Tony Gwynn Heads to the Hall, pt. 3

First, apologies for the delay in a new post. I had guest in town and was not able to get to a new post. That said...Welcome to our final installment of Tony Heads to the Hall. A lot to get to regarding Tony Gwynn and the Padres so let's dive in.

This past weekend at Petco Park was Tribute to Tony Weekend, a weekend that reached it's apex on Saturday with a pre-game ceremony and the unveiling of the first statute at Petco Park.

There are a handful of players that have been honored in such a way. Stan Musial, Willie Mays, monument park in Yankee Stadium, to name a few. To have a statute built in your honor, it's big. Bigger than a street named after you, bigger than having your number retired. It's an iconic gesture reserved for only the greatest of players and people.

Of the many accomplishments Tony Gwynn achieved throughout his career, two notable numbers stick out the most. One is 5. 5 Gold Gloves, perhaps the stat that Tony Gwynn was most proud of as a player. He was not an excellent fielder at first, he had to work at it. And work he did, and work, and work. And in typical Tony Gwynn fashion, he worked at it until he became the best at it, at least for 5 seasons.

The second number is 20. Tony Gwynn played 20 seasons in the majors, all 20 with San Diego. In today's era of free agents and big contracts, 20 seasons with one team is a remarkable stat. Tony Gwynn had chances to play elsewhere, to make more money. Certainly he was worth it. He didn't. The most Gwynn ever made was $6.3 million in a season. Compared to the salaries of today, that's a fraction of what he was worth.

He is the most beloved player in San Diego sports history. On Sunday, he will become one of the immortals of baseball.

"The only thing I want people to say about me is that I played the game the way it should be played." - Tony Gwynn

"If you work hard, good things will happen." - Charles Gwynn Sr.

News and Notes

- The Padres have run across hard times recently. Dropping 3 of 4 to the Phillies and 2 of 3 to the Rockies. In the meantime, the Padres bullpen has an ERA of 8.87 in the last 6 games. Linebrink and Meredith blew the hold opportunity on Monday by giving up a 3 run HR to Holliday to tie the game followed by a 2-run shot by Hawpe.

- The Padres have lost 8 of their last 13 games since the All-Star Break. It may be time to realize that the lack of offense is beginning to wear on the pitching staff. Sup-par performances by Wells and Germano recently have shown that the Padres cannot recover from a poor pitching performance. Coors Field is usually the ointment for what ails a fledgling offense, however, the Padres only mustered 2 runs today and only 12 runs over the 3 games.

- As I was writing this and about to lament about the struggles of Linebrink, struggles that have been going on since June, news broke that the Padres have traded Scott Linebrink. Linebrink was the talk of the trading deadline a year ago but hardly a word this year, a sign Linebrink says tipped him off that he may be on his way out. Linebrink was traded today to the Milwaukee Brewers for 3 minor leaguers, one of which, Joe Thatcher (1-0, 0.55 ERA at Double-A Huntsville) is expected to be with the club as they head to Houston this weekend.

- What the Padres will probably need to make move for is a starting pitcher. Wells is due to be suspended soon and yesterday Chris Young was removed in the 3rd inning with a "left oblique strain," an injury that kept Cameron out 17 games last season. Regardless, Wells has been far from stellar and teams have begun to figure out Germano who has lost 5 of his last 6 starts. With limited help in the minors (Mike Thompson, Clay Hensley, and Tim Stauffer, all of whom have struggled in the majors) the Padres will be in need of a starter. They will also need more bullpen help with the departure of Linebrink and one name that hasn't been named but makes some sense is Octavio Dotel. The closer of the Royals is on the block and may fit nicely in the 7th or 8th inning role.

- A lot of bad in Friarland so let's end with some positive:

- Milton Bradley is raking right now. A bright spot for this offense.

- And finally, Sunday is the big day for Tony. If your in San Diego, come out to Petco Park at 10am to watch on the big screen. If not, watch from home and enjoy one of the finest Hall of Fame classes we will see for quite some time.

Tony Gwynn Heads to the Hall, pt. 2

Let's start with a number. 434. On it's face, doesn't mean anything, simply a number. Now put it in context. 434 is how many times Tony Gwynn struck out. Ever. Tony Gwynn has 9,288 career at-bats and only 434 times did those at-bats end in a strike out. Thats .04% of the time. For comparison sake, Adam Dunn this year has already struck out 113 times. In less than one season. 434 in 20 seasons. That my friends, is ridiculously good. Scary good. Ted Williams once said that the hardest thing in sports is to hit a round ball with a round bat squarely. Few did it better, or with more consistency, than Tony Gwynn.

There are players you watch that spoil you. If you were a Jordan fan, you expect every shot to go in. Tiger to win every major. Current MLB players like ARod you expect homeruns from, or Peavy you expect to throw shut out ball. This of course is an impossible request of any athlete. It was a request that was asked of Tony Gwynn and more often then not he obliged. You expected a hit and were shocked when he didn't get on base. Near earth shattering shock when he struck out and if he struck out swinging...well...it happened so rarely I can hardly remember if it ever did. Of course it did though, but with such irregularity that every time he struck out or popped out it was as if the sky was falling. Growing up in Oceanside began my respect of Tony Gwynn but moving to Arizona made it harder to follow him on a day to day basis. This required box scores (pre-internet of course) that would reveal the numbers but never the story of the game. First things first, check Gwynn's line, and it would be a very rare day that the hit column didn't have at least the number 1 underneath it. Consistency. If it was the 7th or 8th inning and Gwynn didn't have a hit, it was a shock. Just like when Tiger doesn't win a major. Unfair to ask of Gwynn? Perhaps. But he did everything possible to respond to the request.

Tony Gwynn won 8 National League Batting Titles, a number that was good enough to tie Tony Gwynn with the National League All-Time Record with Honus Wagner. Only Ty Cobb won more batting titles (11) than Tony. Of those 8, Gwynn has stated, and for those who remember it agree, the most exciting of those titles was 1989 against Will Clark of the San Francisco Giants. Going into the last day of the season both Gwynn and Clark were batting .333. And in somewhat poetic fashion, the Padres finished the season playing the Giants. That day Will Clark went 1 for 4. Tony Gwynn...3 for 4, winning the batting title. It is games like this when impossible request are answered.

This year Tony Gwynn received one of the highest honors any athlete can receive. He got himself on the cover of a Wheaties box. When she heard about the Wheaties box, Tony Gwynn's mom could only laugh. The scrawny kid from Long Beach, who played basketball at San Diego State (and was drafted by the Clippers) is on the cover of the Wheaties box. What a ride.

In our next posting, Left Coast Bias will discuss the final season for Tony, including his last game which I was lucky enough to be at. We'll also discuss his two World Series appearances and his current job as head coach of San Diego State's baseball team.

News and Notes:

- Statement series! Perhaps somewhat under the radar but the Padres won the series from the Mets last night with a thrilling 5-4 win. The Mets are widely considered the best team the National League has and with their lineup you can see why. David Wright's 3-run homerun last night off Linebrink to tie the game in the 8th took all the life out of the stadium. That life was quickly restored thanks to something the Padres haven't had much of all year, 2 out hitting. Blum's 2 out single scored Greene. Hoffman racked up yet another save in 1-2-3 form. The Padres open a 4 game set with the Phillies tonight.

- Marcus Giles has been benched for the next few games while he works with hitting coach Merv Rettemund. Giles has hit .197 since May 14th.

- Hiram Bocachica was designated for assignment yesterday as the Padres activated Terrmel Sledge from the DL. The Padres now have to trade or waive him. Bocachica showed flashes of brilliance and adds much needed speed to a lineup terribly void of that commodity. Considering the Padres bench is not what it was the last few years, Bocachica may be an integral part of this team yet. Here's hoping the Padres hang on to him and send him to AAA.

- Milton Bradley hit his first home run as a Padre yesterday, a 427 foot bomb to right-center field. For the naysayers (of which I count myself as one) Bradley has been an offensive spark and, as for attitude, so far, so good.

- Someone told Maddox it was 1996. Mad Dog was dealing last night, going 5IP, 0 ER, 0 BB, and 6 K's.

- Chris Young bought every player on the Padres an embroidered robe with their name and team number on the back as a thank you for helping get him elected to the All-Star Game.

- The Padres head to the weekend 1 game back but tied in the loss column with L.A. With the trade deadline approaching (July 31) Towers has stated a major move is unlikely. However, a starter or a bench player may be in the works. The Padres have been lucky with health in their starters, but with Wells and Maddox over 40 and the insurance plans of Hensly and Thompson struggling in AAA Portland, the Padres may be looking elsewhere for some backup help. As for bench help, I think I speak for many that it's time to welcome Mark Loretta back with open arms.


Saturday is the Tony Gwynn Ceremony and unveiling of the first statute at Petco Park. I'll be on hand and give a full report afterwards. Till then, keep the faith Friar Faithful!

Tony Gwynn Heads to the Hall, pt. 1

One of my favorite stories about Tony Gwynn includes some interesting cyclical aspects to it. On July 19, 1982, Padres prospect Tony Gwynn was promoted to play centerfield and given the start. On this particular the day, the Padres were playing a seemingly innocuous game in the midst of a season that would end up 81-81 for the year.

Playing first base for the Phillies that day was none other than the all-time hit champion, Pete Rose. Tony Gwynn's first hit in the majors was a double. His second hit of the evening a single, allowing Pete Rose to impart this piece of wisdom on the Padres new centerfielder: "Don't try and catch me all in one night." Tony Gwynn would never catch Rose (a record that still stands at 4,256 hits in a career) but that wasn't for a lack of trying. What I like best about this comment is the perception Rose had. Chances are he had seen many major leaguers make their debut and get their first hit. How many of them did he joking tell not to catch him in a night? Not many I'm guessing. My guess is he only said things like that to players he actually believed could do it. Tony Gwynn was one of those players.

The cyclical nature of this event doesn't stop at Rose and Gwynn. Tony Gwynn Jr. a promising young prospect in the Brewers organization, was brought up from the minors to make his debut on July 15th, 2006. Four days later, on July 19th against the Giants, and 24 years to the day of his father's first hit, Tony Gwynn Jr. hit a double as his first major league hit, just like pops.

Tony Gwynn was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on January 9, 2007 by 97.6% of the vote, begging the question as to what is wrong with the other 2.4%. It is the second highest vote total in Hall of Fame history and it could not be for a more deserving individual. Tony Gwynn was a ballplayer, a student, and an ambassador for both the game and the city that has embraced him since that double in July, 1982.

In 12 days, amongst the biggest crowds ever seen by Cooperstown, Tony Gwynn alongside Cal Ripken Jr. will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. As Tony Gwynn himself said on that January afternoon the day he heard about Cooperstown, the induction will be "vindication," showing that in this game there is room for the guy who hits singles and slaps the ball the other way.

In the upcoming post, Left Coast Bias will celebrate the great career of Mr. Padre with anecdotes and career stats. Today's career stat to highlight: 19 straight seasons of hitting over .300. Tony Gwynn hit below .300 only once in his career, his rookie season in which he played 54 games. Outside of his rookie year, Tony Gwynn never hit under .309 for a season. In 1994, Tony Gwynn hit .394, the highest National League batting average since 1930. Had the season not been shortened by the strike, Gwynn would have had a chance to hit .400, a mythical number not reached since Ted Williams. In the end, Gwynn wound up 3 hits short of .400 in the shortened season.

Tony Gwynn's career batting average of .338 is good enough for 17th on the all-time list. As Al Leiter would say: "The only way to pitch to Tony (Gwynn) is throw the ball down the middle and hope he hits it at someone."

The Padres plan to honor Tony Gwynn and his induction to the Baseball Hall of Fame this upcoming weekend with a ceremony on Saturday and the unveiling of a statute for Tony Gwynn. I've had the chance to "meet" Tony Gwynn twice, using the term meet loosely of course. I was an honorary batboy in 1988 for the Padres, an event that was colossal in my mind and inconsequential I'm sure in his. But I met him and he shook my hand. Pretty cool. The greatest player in Padres history and, according to Sports Illustrated, the greatest hitter since Ted Williams, Tony Gwynn #19 is Mr. Padre.

To be Continued...


Up Next:

-The Padres open a 3-game series with the New York Mets. A great test this week in seeing exactly where the Padres sit in the National League hierarchy. The Mets are routinely considered the best in the National League and with good reason. Jose Reyes atop that lineup with Beltran and Delgado in the middle make for a formidable night. With San Diego's inability to throw out runners, keeping Reyes off base will be imperative.

-David Wells starts tonight, in the midst of his appeal for his suspension.

-The Padres avoided the sweep in Arizona thanks to Germano's gem. Heath Bell and Linebrink both got a scoreless inning of work in, rebounding from rough outings the day before.

-Brian Giles...STAY AT THE TOP OF THE LINEUP!!! Giles has been unstoppable atop that lineup, with an on-base pct of over .400 since making the move to the 1-hole.

2nd Half Preview; Wells Being Wells; Final All-Star Thoughts

Are you rested? Feel refreshed and rejuvenated? Good, because now it's time to get serious. The first half of the season for the Padres was great, but now the stakes get raised. The playoff push begins today.

A quick housecleaning item of something I meant to do in the last post. So, without further ado, the Top 5 Padres Moments of the First Half:

5) April 25th - Jake Peavy strikes out 16 Diamondbacks including 9 in a row.

4) April 8th - The Padres win a 2-1 game against Colorado thanks to a walk-off single by Kevin Kouzmanoff, breaking his 2 for 20 slump.

3) June 23rd - Padres beat the Red Sox 6-1 thanks to Chris Young's one hit performance.

2) June 7th - The Padres complete a three game sweep of rival Los Angeles by scoring 5 runs in the 9th inning off of Jonathon Braxton.

1) June 6th - Future Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman notches save number 500 against the Dodgers, making him the first player to ever record over 500 hundred saves.


All-Star Game Final Thoughts

-Some final thoughts on the Mid-Summer Classic. Jake Peavy was named the starter for the National League and did not disappoint, pitching one scoreless inning, giving up one hit to Ichiro.

- Chris Young was the tough-luck loser in the game giving up the inside the park homerun to Ichiro thanks to a quirky bounce off the right field wall. At the time it had only given the AL a 2-1 lead, however, the National League bats were silence for 8 2/3rds of the game.

- Trevor Hoffman did what he does, pitching a scoreless inning. No rematch with Michael Young though.

- Tony LaRussa thinks he is smarter than he is. Bases Loaded, game on the line and he keeps Pujols on the bench. Slump or no, give me Pujols.

So for the 11th year in a row the National League is unable to beat the American League, giving home field advantage to the American League.


2nd Half Preview
- The Padres open the 2nd half of the season in Arizona against division rival Diamondbacks. Greg Maddox was tagged with the loss last night in the desert. Superman had kryptonite, Maddox has Phoenix, where he is 0-6 with an ERA over 5.00.

- Jake Peavy's scheduled start on Saturday was pushed back to Tuesday due to tightness in his arm. Pitching coach Darren Balsely has stated it is merely precaution coming off the inning Peavy threw in the All-Star Game.

- Chris Young gets the start tonight having served his 5 game suspension. The Padres shrewdly set it up for him to serve the suspension around the All-Star Break, four games before and one game after, ensuring that Young would not miss a scheduled start.

- David Wells was suspended 7 games for "violent and aggresive actions" toward umpire Ed Hickock on July 7th. David Wells was upset with the strike zone and, after walking a batter and then giving up a home run to Jeff Francouer of the Braves, went over to discuss the strike zone. According to Wells, and from the perspective I had at the game, Wells was pretty calm in asking questions. After a few mins, Hickock got tired of it and told Wells to get his "fat ass back on the mound." Obviously, this didn't go well, Wells, exploded, got tossed and then things got quite heated.
As a pitcher, you should be allowed to simply ask questions about the strike zone so you can tailor your pitches accordingly. Umpires should not be given carte blanche and they certainly shouldn't be allowed to escalate the situation without punishment. The NBA kicked out a ref for picking a fight with Tim Duncan. MLB should adopt a similar policy, holding umpires who make a situation worse, accountable for their actions. A 7 game suspension for arguing balls and strikes is ridiculous, and rightfully so, is appealing the suspension.

- Padres former first round pick shortstop turned pitcher Matt Bush has been shut down for at least a week due to soreness in his arm.

And Finally...

This may not be the forum for it but I think its worth commenting on, if only briefly. On the Sunday before the All-Star break, and on most Sunday's, the Padres held a promotion for kids 14 and under (a floppy hat in this case). Due to a scheduling quirk, that Sunday was also the day the Padres hosted a Gay Pride Day at the park. The events surrounding Gay Pride were having the Men's Gay Choir sing the National Anthem and a scoreboard message. That was it.

Because of the mix with a kids promotion, many people were up in arms, citing how it was irresponsible by the Padres. For a great, and highly fictional take on this, check out Bill O'Reilly (author's note: not a fan and normally wouldn't link to him, but its worth a read for shear ridiculousness). http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,289103,00.html

Now, I wasn't at the game, but according to all accounts I have read, the day went off without a hitch. Unlike our buddy Bill states, there was not inappropriate displays of affection. The boycott planned for that evening fizzled, as the Padres drew over 40,000 fans that night. We cannot simply say that due to your sexual preference you shouldn't be at a game. If anything, it was a blessing in disguise that Pride day fell on a kids promotion. Maybe we can teach kids tolerance, a lesson the parents who complained need to learn.

Up Next:

- Beginning on Monday, Left Coast Bias will begin a preview of Tony Gwynn Weekend, to be held in San Diego the weekend of July 20th. Post will include a career retrospective, personal anecdotes, and a preview of the festivities. Tony Gwynn will forever be linked to the Padres and his induction into the Hall of Fame marks the culmination of one of the great careers in baseball. Stay Tuned for that!

And There's the Bell: 1st Half Review

And so ends the first half of the 2007 MLB season. A season where we learned that the best Japanese import pitcher isn't named Dice-K (his name is Okajimi). Where we can't stop the speeding train that is Barry Bonds and the home run pursuit. And where more times than you would expect (or ever want to see) 2 hits are enough to win a game. With an eye on the 2nd Half, here is the Padres 1st Half Review.

Standings:

The Padres finish the first half alone in first place atop the National League West. This is the 6th time in franchise history that the Padres have lead at the official halfway point. The other 5 times? The Padres went on to win the division.

The Padres finish 11 games over .500 with a 25-20 home record. This all despite the fact that the Padres rank last in team batting average, currently at .241.

So how are the Padres doing it? Run differential. The Padres post the best run differential in baseball with a ration of runs scored = 374 and runs against = 298. The Padres 298 runs against stat is by far the best in baseball, more than 50 runs better than the team in second in that category, the Boston Red Sox.

Players:

First the good.

Jake Peavy and Chris Young: As far as team MVP goes, these two are 1A and 1B. Young currently leads the NL in ERA with a 2.00 ERA. Peavy follows Young with a 2.19. By far the key to the Padres winning ways have been their pitching and the two key cogs of the best pitching staff in baseball is these two.

What makes the Padres dangerous as an October team is the proposition that in a 5-game series they could conceivably lineup: Peavy, Young, Maddox, Peavy, Young. Tough to win 3 games against that pitching lineup.

More good.

Mike Cameron post-April. Cameron started the season below the Mendoza line, batting .198 to end April. Since, he has batted .305 with 11 HR. This to go along with more gold glove play in center.

Adrian Gonzalez. Prior to the current slump that he appears to be on his way breaking out of (the All-Star Break will help as well, giving Gonzalez some time off). He is the team leader in BA, RBI, and OPS.

Bullpen. What is there to say. Nothing that hasn't already been said. Stellar work and a Hall of Famer closing out games. Keep playing "Hell's Bells" fellas! And oh yeah...did I mention 500 saves from Trevor Hoffman! 25 saves at the break, good enough for 3rd in the NL and a pace of over 50 saves for the season. Not bad. Off-Speed Does Kill!

Now some Bad.

Marcus Giles as a leadoff hitter. Way...WAY too man first pitch swings, too many hacks. The Padres need some more patience from their number 2 hitter.

Throwing out Baserunners. The Braves stole 3 more tonight, bringing the total of bases stolen on the Padres to 101. Amount thrown out? 18. Some of this is due to the pitchers (Maddox and Peavy for one do not hold runners very well). This has to get better.

Offense. The Padres have attempted to rectify this situation by making what may become the two biggest acquisitions in what appears to be a down year for trades. Michael Barrett and Milton Bradley will hopefully add some much needed punch to the middle of the Padres lineup. Bradley got his first Padres start on Saturday, a game I was able to be at (beach towel day people!). An interesting start, hitting an infield single, making a juggling catch in left-center, and hitting a 398 foot flyout. Welcome to Petco. Time will tell if these two moves will pay off. In two games with Bradley, he has hit the ball hard every time, getting two hits again today.

1st Half Awards

Team MVP: Jake Peavy- this team wins with pitching, and there may be no better pitcher in the National League than Jake Peavy. Honorable Mention: Chris Young, Trevor Hoffman, Adrian Gonzalez

Team Silver Slugger: Adrian Gonzalez- this guy is an All-Star in the making and can hit to all fields, hit for power and hit with runners on. Only negative. Too many strikeouts. Honorable Mention: Mike Cameron, Khalil Greene

Team Gold Glove: Khalil Greene- there may be no better defensive shortstop playing right now, especially on slow choppers and balls behind the bag. Anyone who saw Greene's spinning throw from behind second base knows this guy is for real. Honorable Mention: Mike Cameron, Adrian Gonzalez

Surprise Player: Jose Cruz Jr.- Cruz has been asked to play all three positions in the outfield at some point, can bunt, hit to all fields and is a switch hitter. Not bad. Honorable Mention: Heath Bell, Royce Ring


Looking toward the second half, the Padres continue to pitch well. One can only hope that the offense will start to pull their weight. Looks like another race to the finish with the Dodgers, making every LA/SD series huge. As for this last set, the Padres dropped 2 of 3 to Atlanta, a team that has had SD's number the last two years. Uncharacteristically, the Padres gave up 17 runs in the weekend set. On Sunday the Padres, after being somewhat punchless all game, strung together 5 consecutive 2 out hits to push the tying run to second before Marcus Giles struck out. A gutty performance, but where were the hits prior to 2 outs in the 9th?

The Padres need to hit better with runners in scoring position and less than 2 outs. If they can increase their productivity in that one category, it will be near impossible for them to not win a 3rd straight NL West Division Crown.


Just For Fun

Quickly now, as this will be the only post until Friday when the Padres return from the break, here are the National League Awards as I see them for the first half:

MVP: Matt Holliday, Col - leads the league in BA

Cy Young: Jake Peavy, SD - Penny and Peavy will be battling all year. And now throw in Young to this race

Rookie of the Year: Hunter Pence, Hou - a bright spot in a bad year in Houston

Manager of the Year: Ned Yost, Mil - raise your hand if you thought the Brewers would be leading the Central at the break. Put your hands down, your lying.

Comeback Player of the Year: Ken Griffey Jr., Cin- vintage. Straight vintage.


See you all on Friday when the Padres head to the desert to take on division rival Arizona. Stay tuned next week for full coverage of Tony Gwynn Weekend in San Diego and of course the induction into Baseball's Hall of Fame. (22 games...and counting)

When Players and Coaches Can't Get it Right, Ask the Fans

Chris Young Heading to San Fran

It took 4.5 million votes, daily campaigning by his All-Star Teammates Jake Peavy and Trevor Hoffman and a little common sense to elect Chris Young to the All-Star Game today. In MLB's now traditional "Final Vote" competition (to elect the final player to each leagues team), Chris Young prevailed today, beating out Cubs Pitcher Carlos Zambrano.

Chris Young had a chance to make a lasting impression on Wednesday night as he got the start against the Marlins. Consider the message delivered loud and clear. Chris Young pitched 7 innings on Wednesday, giving up 5 hits, 0 runs and striking out 9. Chris Young lowered his now league leading ERA to 2.00 (lower currently than fellow All-Star Jake Peavy).

The Padres had gone all out throughout the week in an attempt to get Chris Young elected. It got to the point that even Chris Young's competition for the Final Vote thought he should get in. Carlos Zambrano said on Tuesday that he was surprised that Chris Young wasn't named to the team and believed he deserved it. So, on behalf of Left Coast Bias, congrats to Chris Young! A well deserved first, and hopefully the beginning of many more, All-Star selections!

Series Split

The Padres dropped a 3-2 game to the Marlins this afternoon to split the four game series against the Fish. The most telling, and troubling, aspect of this series is unfortunately a common tale. The offense. Or, better put, the lack of offense. The Padres dropped today's game while racking only 3 hits. Padres 3-5 hitters went 0 for 10 today with 7 strikeouts. And who was pitching this Cy Young like game against the Friars. Byung Hyun Kim, who with his 4.50 ERA and 47 to 36 strikeout to walk ratio looked more Bob Gibson than Kim. A pitcher known this year for an inability to find the strike zone was made the benefit of over anxious hitters. The Padres, outside of Brian Giles, continue to swing at first pitches and bad pitches. Today's game was no different.

The Padres are also struggling to hit with runners in scoring position with an overall team batting average of .241, good enough for 29th out of 30 MLB teams and a slugging percentage of .388, good enough for 26th. Hardly numbers one expects to see from a first place team.

The lack of hitting leads to the Padres playing close games. Many close games. That leads to pressure on the pitchers, requiring the Padres pitchers to be perfect every time out due to lack of run support. Jake Peavy was the latest victim of this offense today, giving up 3 runs in 7 innings. Hardly Peavy-like numbers, but 3 runs qualifies as a quality start and usually translate to wins. In Peavy's last 4 starts he has gone 1-2 with a no decision. Peavy gave up 3 earned runs to the Red Sox on 6/24, a game in which the Padres slugged out 2 runs. Peavy gave up only 1 run 5 days ago in L.A against Brad Penny while the Padres mustered only 1 run. The Padres went on to win this game in extra-innings, a position they wouldn't have been in had it not been for Peavy. And then there was today, where the Padres had an outburst of 3 hits. On the 4th of July the Padres won a 1-0 game, thanks to an error in the 9th to score the winning, and only, run.

This is a recipe for more disappointment in October. Michael Barret has added some offense and eventually the Padres will add Milton Bradley to the lineup. Will that be enough? Hard to say. The lineup is slumping, most noticed by Adrian Gonzalez, the Padres best pure hitter, who has hit a serious slump. In the last 10 games, Adrian has 4 hits...total. That's a 4 for 39 slump.

Moving Brian Giles to the leadoff spot has helped, providing a base runner every few innings. But free swinging and too many strikeouts is making that move moot.

For many of these hitters, the All-Star break can't come soon enough. Here's hoping for more offense in the second half!!!

Up Next:

Atlanta comes into town for yet another reunion of Greg Maddox with his former team. This three game set ends the first half for the Padres.

Chris Young dropped his appeal and began serving his suspension today for the fight against Derrek Lee.

We are within a month of Tony Gwynn being inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame!!!

Elect CY to San Fran!!!

When you're 6'10'' its hard to go unnoticed. That is, unless, you post a sub 1.00 ERA at home and your name is Chris Young. As is the new tradition with MLB's All-Star Game, the final roster spot will be decided by a fan vote that ends on Thursday. In the National League, the "Final Spot" candidates are:

Tom Gorzelanny, Pittsburgh (Pitcher)
Carlos Zambrano, Chicago (Pitcher)
Roy Oswalt, Houston (Pitcher)
Brandon Webb, Arizona (Pitcher)
Chris Young, San Diego (Pitcher)

Folks, it's time to bust out your campaign buttons, grab a friend and start stumping for Chris Young. It is an absolute joke that Tony Larussa has left Chris Young off this All-Star team. For a quick refresher, here is CY's All-Star resume:

8-3 Record
2.14 ERA
once again...
2.14 ERA!!!
Home ERA of 0.94 (forget ballparks folks, that is sick)
Opponents Batting AVG. .197

By comparison:
Gorzelanny, ERA 3.05
Webb, ERA 3.05
Oswalt, ERA 3.42
Zambrano, ERA 4.20

No one is close on this list to CY's numbers. Frankly, it shouldn't have come to this. Young should have been named to the All-Star team already. But, here we are. So, whether you're a Padres fan or simply a baseball fan or simply a friend of mine who reads this blog. You see the numbers, Young deserves your vote. Here is the link for the fan's final vote: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070702&content_id=2062413&vkey=allstar2007&fext=.jsp

Vote early, vote often. You get to vote an unlimited amount of times. There were plenty of snubs on this year's team (Eric Brynes from Arizona, Jimmy Rollins from Philly, Adrian Gonzalez from San Diego, the fact that Bonds is starting) but here is your chance to make up for one OBVIOUS snub. VOTE CHRIS YOUNG!!!

The good news, as of 5:00 est on the first day of voting, Chris Young held a slim lead over Carlos Zambrano. The Padres are home the rest of this week and according to the team, they plan to blockade certain gates to steer fans toward voting computers set-up throughout the park to get them to vote for CY. Spread the word, his trip to the Bay is in your hands!!!!!

Only So Many 5 Run 9ths; Padres Forgotton for All-Star Game

Padres vs Dodgers

It is sometimes hard to say following a shutout loss to your rival, but, this was a pretty good weekend for the Friars. The Padres took 2 of 3 against Los Angeles this weekend, moving into sole possession of first place in the National League West with a 1 game lead over L.A. and a 1.5 game lead over Arizona. As for the series, is was what one would expect. Ultra-competitive with just a hint of September baseball in the air. The marquee matchup was Saturday night where Dodger ace Brad Penny went up against our man, Jake Peavy. The two pitched outstanding ballgames, both getting strikeouts when they had to have them. Notably, in the 7th and last inning for Peavy, with the bases loaded, Peavy struck out Saenz with a 94 mph to end the threat. In the end, neither pitcher would factor in the decision, both pitching 7 innings while giving up 1-run. Jose Cruz and Geoff Blum hit back-to-back doubles in the 12th to secure a 3-1 Padres win. Hoffman got the save, his 23 of the year. Peavy lowered his ERA to 2.09, behind only Brad Penny, and regained the National League in strikeouts with 119. Royce Ring picked up his first MLB win in this game.

While Saturday was the highlight matchup, the Padres also won on Friday, scoring 7 runs to take a 7-2 lead in a huge 6 run 4th inning. As it turned out, all 7 were needed, as the Padres gave 3 runs back in the 8th and another in the 9th.

As for Sunday, Germano suffered his second loss of the year while Billingsley pitched 3 hit ball over 7 innings, blanking the Friars.

Padres return home, alone in first, to take on Florida and Atlanta before the All-Star Break.

All-Star Game

And speaking of that All-Star Game, the teams were announced today and predictably (and deservedly), Jake Peavy was named to the team. Now, seeing as the Padres are a first place team with the best record in the National League, one would imagine that Peavy would be followed to San Fran with a bevy of Friars. But, as is often the case in San Diego, the Padres were snubbed, as the only other Padres other than Peavy going to San Fran is Trevor Hoffman (at 23 saves already, a deserved spot). Which means that:

Chris Young with his 8-3 record and 2.14 ERA will not be attending. Instead, LaRussa took Cole Hamels who, while striking out many, is 9-4 with a 3.87 ERA. Nearly 2 full points above Chris Young.

Adrian Gonzalez with his .275 BA and 14 Home Runs and Gold Glove play will once again be watching from home. Instead, taking Derek Lee, who although hitting .346, has only 6 HR's and is 10 RBI's behind Adrian Gonzalez.

The downside to playing on the Left Coast. The upside? Rest, much needed for many players.

Look, I know the All-Star Game starters are picked by fans and to that end, its hard to get fans outside of San Diego to vote. Bigger markets, more people, more votes. But for reserves. That's picked by coaches, and coaches know better. They know how good this Padres team because they remember watching the Padres when the rolled in and took 2 of 3 from most of these coaches. Luckily, by October, the All-Star Game is a distant memory. Looking forward to it.

Notes

Milton Bradley was placed on the 15-day DL retroactive to June 21st, the last time he played. This is a somewhat expected move as Kevin Towers eluded to this weekend when discussing the trade with the A's.

Brian Giles was moved to the leadoff spot, a move I have said since last winter the Padres should make. No hitter on the Padres has better plate discipline, consistently makes contact, and is a smart (if not fast) base runner. The other plus is it moves Marcus to the more comfortable 2-hole for him. The Padres scored 7 runs in the first game with this configuration.

BEACH TOWEL DAY ON SATURDAY!!!

Some NL East teams come into Petco to close the first half of the season. Florida followed by Atlanta. Full reports on those series when they conclude.

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One month in for LCB and it's already building. Thanks for the continued reading. Much More to Come!!!