I'm watching the news this morning while enjoying my coffee and all I hear about is the weather bringing havoc to Opening Day. The White Sox game has been snowed out. The Red Sox opener, rained out.
It will be in the mid-70's today for the Padres home opener. So, no matter the talent on the field this year, San Diego fans can enjoy the fact that there is no snow or rain on Opening Day.
At the beginning of the movie Major League there is a montage of different fans throughout Cleveland complaining that they don't recognize any of the players on this year's Indians team. In a way, I feel like that's what is happening here in San Diego. Names like Evereth Cabrera, Correia, and pretty much the entire bullpen are not household names.
Let me be the one to say that no-name players does not equate to a poor quality team. Is it likely that the Padres will finish in last place? Probably. Though Baseball Prospectus does predict an 11 game turnaround for the Padres that would leave them only 1 game back of third place in the division. The fact of the matter is we don't know. We don't know if this bullpen can hold up, if this starting rotation can win some games and if, like Kevin Towers says, this offense is better than last year.
But that's the beauty of Opening Day. Today, the Padres are not in last, are not a mile behind the leaders, and there's no reason to believe, if only for the day, that the Padres could surprise people. What that surprise looks like is unclear? To me, finishing .500 would be a surprise based on the "experts" pre-season prediction. Less we forget these same "experts" predicted the Tigers to win the A.L. How'd that go?
I'll be at Opening Day today, enjoying the XX1090 Block Party before hand and taken advantage of the new food deals at Petco. Follow Left Coast Bias on Twitter live from Petco at LeftCoastBias.
Enjoy Opening Day!
Showing posts with label Jake Peavy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jake Peavy. Show all posts
Monday, April 6, 2009
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Dining at Petco
Opening Day is merely 4 days away. Some quick notes before we get to the really important stuff.
Corey Brock (Padres blog writer on MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @FollowthePadres) believes the Opening Day lineup to look like this:
Catcher: Nick Hundley, Henry Blanco Infielders: Adrian Gonzalez, Edgar Gonzalez, David Eckstein, Evereth Cabrera, Luis Rodriguez, Kevin Kouzmanoff. Outfielders: Jody Gerut, Brian Giles, Chase Headley, Cliff Floyd, Scott Hairston. Rotation: Jake Peavy, Chris Young, Walter Silva, Kevin Correia, Shawn Hill. Bullpen: Heath Bell, Cla Meredith, Arturo Lopez, Edwin Moreno, Duaner Sanchez, Eulogio De La Cruz, Ed Mujica.
Listening to Scott and BR this morning, it sounds like Henry Blanco will actually get the start on Monday at catcher for Jake Peavy. Not sure if this means Blanco is going to be Peavy's catcher all season or not though.
As for the rotation, Baek, the presumed number 3 starter (shudder) will begin the season on the DL. Interesting fact about the pitching staff of the Padres, as provided by Ducksnorts: Peavy + Young = 1916.2 career IP. Other 10 guys on staff = 1460.1 career IP. Five pitchers with less than 100 IP. Three with 0 IP.
So there's that.
With a lineup hovering around $40 million and expectations low for the 2009 season, there is one thing to get excited about. Food. Ballpark food historically has been one of the great parts of attending live baseball. This year, Petco has both added some menu items as well as provided some pretty good deals. So, to prepare you for Opening Day, let's take a look at some new and old food options at Petco Park:
- 5 for 5 deal: hot dog, peanuts, popcorn, cookie and soft drink for $5. Want a beer? $10
- All-you-can-eat Upper Right Field Pavilion and on top of the Western Metal Building
- Coca-Cola Value Weekends: all Friday through Sunday games get an Upper Reserved Ticket, hot dog and soda for $12
And some new food items:
- On Friday and Saturday nights in the Park at the Park will be a street taco stand with pork fresh off the spit.
- Red velvet cupcakes
- Mexican Hot Dog: a hot dog wrapped in bacon (that's right, bacon), pinto beans, tomatoes, onions, jalapeno sauce, ketchup, mustard, mayo.
- San Diego Caesar (apparently the "cilantro-chipotle" dressing makes it San Diego)
- Chicken Sushi Rolls
So, as you can see, no shortage of food options at Petco this year. If you haven't had a chance to check out the multitude of restaurant options, this may be the season to do it. Enjoy the food and we will be back for Opening Day!
Corey Brock (Padres blog writer on MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @FollowthePadres) believes the Opening Day lineup to look like this:
Catcher: Nick Hundley, Henry Blanco Infielders: Adrian Gonzalez, Edgar Gonzalez, David Eckstein, Evereth Cabrera, Luis Rodriguez, Kevin Kouzmanoff. Outfielders: Jody Gerut, Brian Giles, Chase Headley, Cliff Floyd, Scott Hairston. Rotation: Jake Peavy, Chris Young, Walter Silva, Kevin Correia, Shawn Hill. Bullpen: Heath Bell, Cla Meredith, Arturo Lopez, Edwin Moreno, Duaner Sanchez, Eulogio De La Cruz, Ed Mujica.
Listening to Scott and BR this morning, it sounds like Henry Blanco will actually get the start on Monday at catcher for Jake Peavy. Not sure if this means Blanco is going to be Peavy's catcher all season or not though.
As for the rotation, Baek, the presumed number 3 starter (shudder) will begin the season on the DL. Interesting fact about the pitching staff of the Padres, as provided by Ducksnorts: Peavy + Young = 1916.2 career IP. Other 10 guys on staff = 1460.1 career IP. Five pitchers with less than 100 IP. Three with 0 IP.
So there's that.
With a lineup hovering around $40 million and expectations low for the 2009 season, there is one thing to get excited about. Food. Ballpark food historically has been one of the great parts of attending live baseball. This year, Petco has both added some menu items as well as provided some pretty good deals. So, to prepare you for Opening Day, let's take a look at some new and old food options at Petco Park:
- 5 for 5 deal: hot dog, peanuts, popcorn, cookie and soft drink for $5. Want a beer? $10
- All-you-can-eat Upper Right Field Pavilion and on top of the Western Metal Building
- Coca-Cola Value Weekends: all Friday through Sunday games get an Upper Reserved Ticket, hot dog and soda for $12
And some new food items:
- On Friday and Saturday nights in the Park at the Park will be a street taco stand with pork fresh off the spit.
- Red velvet cupcakes
- Mexican Hot Dog: a hot dog wrapped in bacon (that's right, bacon), pinto beans, tomatoes, onions, jalapeno sauce, ketchup, mustard, mayo.
- San Diego Caesar (apparently the "cilantro-chipotle" dressing makes it San Diego)
- Chicken Sushi Rolls
So, as you can see, no shortage of food options at Petco this year. If you haven't had a chance to check out the multitude of restaurant options, this may be the season to do it. Enjoy the food and we will be back for Opening Day!
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Thoughts While Waiting for Selection Sunday
Mercy Rule.
11-1.
One game away from elimination in the second round. Again.
The U.S. team finds themselves in a position sadly familiar today. In the World Baseball Classic, the U.S. is one loss away from being eliminated again in the second round after being flat-out embarrassed by the Puerto Rico team last night. Jake Peavy gave up 6 runs in the first two innings.
Said Peavy: ""I take full responsibility for the boys' loss." "Nothing was working. Just a tough night."
Ultimately, the U.S. team was mercy ruled in the 7th inning after falling behind by 10 runs. Roy Oswalt will take the mound today against the Netherlands to help avoid a fate that this U.S. team promised they would not suffer. Elimination in the second round of the WBC.
In Other News
Josh Geer had another nice start against Milwaukee on Thursday. Geer, who is primed to be the 4th/5th starter for San Diego this year, threw three hitless innings against the Brewers in Spring Training.
With Adrian Gonzalez playing in the World Baseball Classic, the Padres have had a chance to get an extended look at first basemen of the future Kyle Banks. Crushing a three-run shot, Banks has provided fans with an optimistic look toward the future.
Matt Antonelli is taking a page out of the Tony Gwynn School of Hitting nad has turned to videotape to help his swing. After slumping last year in AAA Portland to an average of .215, Antonelli began watching tape to fix a swing that, to that point, had never betrayed him.
Chase Headley continues to impress in spring. Perhaps knowing he will be the Opening Day starter will help in Headley reaching the potential of the Padres best prospect.
That's all for now. Enjoy the WBC and Selection Sunday. And follow me on Twitter at LeftCoastBias!
11-1.
One game away from elimination in the second round. Again.
The U.S. team finds themselves in a position sadly familiar today. In the World Baseball Classic, the U.S. is one loss away from being eliminated again in the second round after being flat-out embarrassed by the Puerto Rico team last night. Jake Peavy gave up 6 runs in the first two innings.
Said Peavy: ""I take full responsibility for the boys' loss." "Nothing was working. Just a tough night."
Ultimately, the U.S. team was mercy ruled in the 7th inning after falling behind by 10 runs. Roy Oswalt will take the mound today against the Netherlands to help avoid a fate that this U.S. team promised they would not suffer. Elimination in the second round of the WBC.
In Other News
Josh Geer had another nice start against Milwaukee on Thursday. Geer, who is primed to be the 4th/5th starter for San Diego this year, threw three hitless innings against the Brewers in Spring Training.
With Adrian Gonzalez playing in the World Baseball Classic, the Padres have had a chance to get an extended look at first basemen of the future Kyle Banks. Crushing a three-run shot, Banks has provided fans with an optimistic look toward the future.
Matt Antonelli is taking a page out of the Tony Gwynn School of Hitting nad has turned to videotape to help his swing. After slumping last year in AAA Portland to an average of .215, Antonelli began watching tape to fix a swing that, to that point, had never betrayed him.
Chase Headley continues to impress in spring. Perhaps knowing he will be the Opening Day starter will help in Headley reaching the potential of the Padres best prospect.
That's all for now. Enjoy the WBC and Selection Sunday. And follow me on Twitter at LeftCoastBias!
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Left Coast Bias Re-Boot
Trevor Hoffman was scheduled to pitch against the Padres today in Spring Training. Such an event made me think "you know, I haven't had a blog post since last summer." What can I say, law school, getting engaged, brand new HDTV, all of these things distracted me here.
So, here we are. The return of Left Coast Bias. For those of you who can't get enough Padres blogging, the blogs I check everyday are Gaslampball.com and Ducksnorts.com. I recommend them both.
Before we get started, realize I have no sources, no inside track to anything. This is merely the ramblings of a fan of the San Diego Padres. Those ramblings likely will devolve into madness as the season progress's and I begin studying for the bar exam.
Second, as I just said, I will begin studying for the bar. So this may not be so regular in the updates.
Finally, here are 10 updates since last we talked.
1) Brian Giles did not get traded;
2) He might have beat his girlfriend though;
3) Trevor Hoffman was outright released and signed by the Milwaukee Brewers. The divorce was ugly, and as usual, the kids were hurt the most;
4) Matt Vasgersian left the Padres to become the host of the MLB Network;
5) David Eckstein is the new second baseman;
6) Khalil Greene is a St. Louis Cardinal;
7) John Moores sold the team to Jeff Moorad;
8) Jake Peavy was almost traded to the Cubs, Mets, Dodgers, and Braves (yet remains a Padre, for now);
9) Former number one pick Matt Bush got drunk, insulsted most of East County, was arrested and is now a Toronto Blue Jay;
10) All kinds of new, cheap food deals at Petco this year. We will get to more of that in a future post;
11) BONUS: Sandy Alderson is likely gone as soon as the Moore to Moorad deal is done.
So, what is their to expect of this year? The Giants look better, the Dodgers have Manny, the Padres are operating at about $40 million. But, it's spring and hope springs eternal in March. But we are back, ready for another Padres season!
Oh, and two Padres are on the U.S. World Baseball Classic team. Jake Peavy and Heath Bell. But they aren't the only Padres out their. Adrian Gonzalez is raking for the Mexican team with fellow Padre Scott Hairston. Henri Blanco is on the Venezuela team and threw out Derek Jeter the other day. And lots of good baseball going on, I highly recommend checking out the WBC.
So, here we are. The return of Left Coast Bias. For those of you who can't get enough Padres blogging, the blogs I check everyday are Gaslampball.com and Ducksnorts.com. I recommend them both.
Before we get started, realize I have no sources, no inside track to anything. This is merely the ramblings of a fan of the San Diego Padres. Those ramblings likely will devolve into madness as the season progress's and I begin studying for the bar exam.
Second, as I just said, I will begin studying for the bar. So this may not be so regular in the updates.
Finally, here are 10 updates since last we talked.
1) Brian Giles did not get traded;
2) He might have beat his girlfriend though;
3) Trevor Hoffman was outright released and signed by the Milwaukee Brewers. The divorce was ugly, and as usual, the kids were hurt the most;
4) Matt Vasgersian left the Padres to become the host of the MLB Network;
5) David Eckstein is the new second baseman;
6) Khalil Greene is a St. Louis Cardinal;
7) John Moores sold the team to Jeff Moorad;
8) Jake Peavy was almost traded to the Cubs, Mets, Dodgers, and Braves (yet remains a Padre, for now);
9) Former number one pick Matt Bush got drunk, insulsted most of East County, was arrested and is now a Toronto Blue Jay;
10) All kinds of new, cheap food deals at Petco this year. We will get to more of that in a future post;
11) BONUS: Sandy Alderson is likely gone as soon as the Moore to Moorad deal is done.
So, what is their to expect of this year? The Giants look better, the Dodgers have Manny, the Padres are operating at about $40 million. But, it's spring and hope springs eternal in March. But we are back, ready for another Padres season!
Oh, and two Padres are on the U.S. World Baseball Classic team. Jake Peavy and Heath Bell. But they aren't the only Padres out their. Adrian Gonzalez is raking for the Mexican team with fellow Padre Scott Hairston. Henri Blanco is on the Venezuela team and threw out Derek Jeter the other day. And lots of good baseball going on, I highly recommend checking out the WBC.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Our God Has Forsaken Us!
Ok, that title might be a bit of a hyperbole but the point remains, times are dark. When you or someone you know is an addict, it is often said that that person cannot be helped until they hit rock bottom. As Padres fan, perhaps you held out hope that the Padres could make a run in the weak NL West. Certainly sweeping the Mets was a sign of good times ahead, yes?
Then rock bottom came. It didn't come in Cleveland, when the Padres lost 2 of 3. It didn't come at the hands of the Yankees who swept the Padres out of New York. It didn't come at home against Detroit or against a streaking Twins team.
Rock bottom came yesterday, when the Mariners, owners of the worst record in baseball and the Padres "hated rival" finished off a sweep of the Padres by winning 9-2 (10-2, 11-2, who knows what the final was, who stuck around?) and beating Jake Peavy. Swept. By the Mariners. At Home.
This is rock bottom.
And the reality of the season appears to be settling into the front office. Sandy Alderson told U-T's Tim Sullivan that the Padres are probably "sellers" at this point, leaving Giles, Maddux, Wolf and I would assume Greene and Iguchi as available commodities now.
This team is shockingly bad. Unlike some cities (Pittsburgh, Kansas City, etc.) where the losing is still painful I imagine, but expected, San Diego came into this season with high expectations. 4 straight winning seasons will do that to a city. And it's hard to say where the issues are. Certainly Iguchi/Edgar are improvements on Marcus Giles, last year Termel Sledge was the starting LF for half a season. Really the biggest lost was Mike Cameron. So what happened? Someone far smarter than myself may be able to answer that.
Comically, the Padres remain only 9.5 GB and would only need to reach .500 for the season to compete for a division title. Maybe this team isn't a 90 win team as predicted by Padre front office members at the beginning of the season, but I still believe this team can play .500.
Typical addict behavior.
Then rock bottom came. It didn't come in Cleveland, when the Padres lost 2 of 3. It didn't come at the hands of the Yankees who swept the Padres out of New York. It didn't come at home against Detroit or against a streaking Twins team.
Rock bottom came yesterday, when the Mariners, owners of the worst record in baseball and the Padres "hated rival" finished off a sweep of the Padres by winning 9-2 (10-2, 11-2, who knows what the final was, who stuck around?) and beating Jake Peavy. Swept. By the Mariners. At Home.
This is rock bottom.
And the reality of the season appears to be settling into the front office. Sandy Alderson told U-T's Tim Sullivan that the Padres are probably "sellers" at this point, leaving Giles, Maddux, Wolf and I would assume Greene and Iguchi as available commodities now.
This team is shockingly bad. Unlike some cities (Pittsburgh, Kansas City, etc.) where the losing is still painful I imagine, but expected, San Diego came into this season with high expectations. 4 straight winning seasons will do that to a city. And it's hard to say where the issues are. Certainly Iguchi/Edgar are improvements on Marcus Giles, last year Termel Sledge was the starting LF for half a season. Really the biggest lost was Mike Cameron. So what happened? Someone far smarter than myself may be able to answer that.
Comically, the Padres remain only 9.5 GB and would only need to reach .500 for the season to compete for a division title. Maybe this team isn't a 90 win team as predicted by Padre front office members at the beginning of the season, but I still believe this team can play .500.
Typical addict behavior.
Monday, June 16, 2008
The Padres Take Manhatten!!!!
Well, the Bronx really but the Muppets never made a movie there. Either way, the Padres continue interleague play on Tuesday by making a rare visit to Yankee Stadium. Jake Peavy made his career debut at Yankee Stadium in 2001 and this Tuesday the Padres will unveil yet another young talent. Chase Headley, by virtue of both the DH and the DL (Hairston hurt, Giles sore, and now PMac "day-to-day") has finally been called up and will likely start, in some capacity, on Tuesday.
Chase Headley is not Roy Hobbs yet he begins his Padres career with Roy Hobbs like expectations. It's important to remember a few things:
- Headley is playing a position that is not his natural position. The Padres drafted Headley as a third baseman long before Kouzmanoff was in the picture. (Another reason why the MLB Amature Draft is not done to fill immediate need).
- Headley is a slow starter. Or so it seems from his season in Portland so far. The first two months of the season in Portland were dreadful for Chase. He has since been mashing however.
- Major League pitching is not Triple-A pitching. If it were it would be Major League pitching.
- His debut is in Yankee Stadium...enough said there.
All that being said, you can't help but be excited to see Chase finally up with the big club. Now, if only he could pitch the 7th inning...
Cleveland Series Wrap-up
Not much to say here. The Padres drew a tough pitching matchup in two of the three days. While Cleveland avoided Peavy, the Padres had the Major League leader in wins (Cliff Lee) followed by the AL Cy Young (C.C. Sabathia).
Padres had chances yesterday though but an uncharacteristically poor defensive performance by Maddux coupled with another Cla Meredith shellacking did the Padres in. Maddux yesterday, hit a batter, threw a wild pitch, made a throwing error and threw over 100 pitches. Not the typical Mad Dog day. And while I can't be upset about the Padres scoring runs and hitting sac flys, it would be nice to see base hit instead of sac flys to keep innings alive for some crooked numbers.
The nice thing is the NL West across the board had a tough weekend, so it may not have mattered all that much.
The Padres get a better pitching draw against the Yankees, avoiding Chien-Ming Wang (who is likely heading to the DL anyway) while throwing Peavy and Banks in the three game set.
Ducksnorts.com writer Geoff Young sat down with Sandy Alderson to discuss all things Padres and baseball. Sandy Alderson is the current Padres CEO and is one of the architects of the Moneyball strategy. Check out part 1 here.
NOTE: This week will be light on post as I will be travelling to New York on Wednesday to catch the Padres day game on Thursday. It's the final year of Yankee Stadium and the Padres are playing them. I had to go.
Chase Headley is not Roy Hobbs yet he begins his Padres career with Roy Hobbs like expectations. It's important to remember a few things:
- Headley is playing a position that is not his natural position. The Padres drafted Headley as a third baseman long before Kouzmanoff was in the picture. (Another reason why the MLB Amature Draft is not done to fill immediate need).
- Headley is a slow starter. Or so it seems from his season in Portland so far. The first two months of the season in Portland were dreadful for Chase. He has since been mashing however.
- Major League pitching is not Triple-A pitching. If it were it would be Major League pitching.
- His debut is in Yankee Stadium...enough said there.
All that being said, you can't help but be excited to see Chase finally up with the big club. Now, if only he could pitch the 7th inning...
Cleveland Series Wrap-up
Not much to say here. The Padres drew a tough pitching matchup in two of the three days. While Cleveland avoided Peavy, the Padres had the Major League leader in wins (Cliff Lee) followed by the AL Cy Young (C.C. Sabathia).
Padres had chances yesterday though but an uncharacteristically poor defensive performance by Maddux coupled with another Cla Meredith shellacking did the Padres in. Maddux yesterday, hit a batter, threw a wild pitch, made a throwing error and threw over 100 pitches. Not the typical Mad Dog day. And while I can't be upset about the Padres scoring runs and hitting sac flys, it would be nice to see base hit instead of sac flys to keep innings alive for some crooked numbers.
The nice thing is the NL West across the board had a tough weekend, so it may not have mattered all that much.
The Padres get a better pitching draw against the Yankees, avoiding Chien-Ming Wang (who is likely heading to the DL anyway) while throwing Peavy and Banks in the three game set.
Ducksnorts.com writer Geoff Young sat down with Sandy Alderson to discuss all things Padres and baseball. Sandy Alderson is the current Padres CEO and is one of the architects of the Moneyball strategy. Check out part 1 here.
NOTE: This week will be light on post as I will be travelling to New York on Wednesday to catch the Padres day game on Thursday. It's the final year of Yankee Stadium and the Padres are playing them. I had to go.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Frustrating Way to Begin a Series
I hate losing games like last night. And not because it was the Dodgers (although that adds a bit of salt to an already opened wound). But because that game was won and then giving away by shoddy defense and one misplaced fastball. The Dodgers opened up a 3 run lead by scoring 4 in the 7th. All made possible by a ball being lost in the lights by Giles and a horrendous play in left field that would have made the Bad News Bears cringe. I look forward to watching the ball drop between the left and center fielder of the Padres in future "Bloopers" reels played throughout the country. Fun times.
But all of that was merely moot as Heath Bell came in and got the first two strikes to Russell Martin with the tying run on third and 2 outs. A 95 MPH fastball that was probably either not high enough or to high and caught to much of the plate was poked into right field. You know how the story ends. Frustrating indeed.
The poll question to the right is a bit useless now as we have our answer. Wil Ledezma was DFA and Joe Thatcher was brought back up. Sadly, Chase Headley did not sneak into his luggage.
Thursday will mark the return of Jake Peavy off the DL as he responded well to his simulated 4-inning game on Saturday.
But all of that was merely moot as Heath Bell came in and got the first two strikes to Russell Martin with the tying run on third and 2 outs. A 95 MPH fastball that was probably either not high enough or to high and caught to much of the plate was poked into right field. You know how the story ends. Frustrating indeed.
The poll question to the right is a bit useless now as we have our answer. Wil Ledezma was DFA and Joe Thatcher was brought back up. Sadly, Chase Headley did not sneak into his luggage.
Thursday will mark the return of Jake Peavy off the DL as he responded well to his simulated 4-inning game on Saturday.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Meet the Mets, Greet the Mets, Come on Everybody and SWEEP THE METS!!!
Well, things have gotten a little bit interesting suddenly. While the Padres remain 9 games below .500, the prospect of ever even sniffing .500 suddenly does not seem laughable. Thanks in part to a 5 game winning streak that includes a 4 game sweep of the suddenly nose-diving Mets, the Padres find themselves in a spot that they have not been in since the first week of April: hopefully.
Last year, I hated seeing Tony Clark coming to the plate. Hated it more when Chris Young was pitching. For some reason, I felt like Clark was a consistent Padre killer. So when they signed Clark last winter I thought "great, a big thumper off the bench." Up until Sunday that "thumping" had not materialized. Apparently he only needed to face the National League's best closer (statistically speaking of course, we know where the real best closer resides!) in a full count, down by 2 with 2 guys on situation. Tony Clark's homerun capped an improbable sweep, winning 3 games 2-1 (including beating Johan Santana) then rebounding on Sunday from down 3 in the first to immediately get those runs back in the bottom half of the 1st. Now the Dodgers come to town and the Padres have a chance to move into third. 6.5 GB and 9 from .500. If this team is at .500 by the All-Star Break and within 5 games, things will get very interesting indeed.
Headley Watch: Word is that Headley will finally and mercifully make a Padres debut when inter-league begins next week. Kevin Towers has said that the sudden change in the Padres fortune has relieved the pressure of bringing up Headley, as opposed to have him come up while the team was scuffling in May and be seen as THE SAVIOR. They still seem hesitant to let him play left though. Perhaps they see something in PMac and Huber that I don't. Hard to imagine Headley plays left worst than those two.
- Jody Gerut has turned it on in the past week and presents a legitimate speed threat at the top of the lineup who is now hitting for average. The power is still not there (although how much power were you expecting?) but getting on-base is, and that has been key to the Padres sudden winning ways.
- Jake Peavy is said to be returning from the DL this Thursday, a day game against the Dodgers, after throwing a simulated game yesterday.
- I love rooting for Edgar Gonzalez. I don't know why but I do.
- Tonight, Greg Maddux goes for the Padres. Somewhat under the radar, Maddux has quietly had a tremendous year, especially at home. The Dodgers send rookie Henshaw who, while sometimes erratic, has electric stuff and a high K/9 rating. Never good when playing the Padres.
Last year, I hated seeing Tony Clark coming to the plate. Hated it more when Chris Young was pitching. For some reason, I felt like Clark was a consistent Padre killer. So when they signed Clark last winter I thought "great, a big thumper off the bench." Up until Sunday that "thumping" had not materialized. Apparently he only needed to face the National League's best closer (statistically speaking of course, we know where the real best closer resides!) in a full count, down by 2 with 2 guys on situation. Tony Clark's homerun capped an improbable sweep, winning 3 games 2-1 (including beating Johan Santana) then rebounding on Sunday from down 3 in the first to immediately get those runs back in the bottom half of the 1st. Now the Dodgers come to town and the Padres have a chance to move into third. 6.5 GB and 9 from .500. If this team is at .500 by the All-Star Break and within 5 games, things will get very interesting indeed.
Headley Watch: Word is that Headley will finally and mercifully make a Padres debut when inter-league begins next week. Kevin Towers has said that the sudden change in the Padres fortune has relieved the pressure of bringing up Headley, as opposed to have him come up while the team was scuffling in May and be seen as THE SAVIOR. They still seem hesitant to let him play left though. Perhaps they see something in PMac and Huber that I don't. Hard to imagine Headley plays left worst than those two.
- Jody Gerut has turned it on in the past week and presents a legitimate speed threat at the top of the lineup who is now hitting for average. The power is still not there (although how much power were you expecting?) but getting on-base is, and that has been key to the Padres sudden winning ways.
- Jake Peavy is said to be returning from the DL this Thursday, a day game against the Dodgers, after throwing a simulated game yesterday.
- I love rooting for Edgar Gonzalez. I don't know why but I do.
- Tonight, Greg Maddux goes for the Padres. Somewhat under the radar, Maddux has quietly had a tremendous year, especially at home. The Dodgers send rookie Henshaw who, while sometimes erratic, has electric stuff and a high K/9 rating. Never good when playing the Padres.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Record Day at Petco
I was sitting at Petco Park yesterday watching the Padres/Mets game and as the game progressed into the later innings I couldn't help but notice the score: 1-1. The later the game went, the more it seemed likely that if the Padres were to win, they would win with a 2-1 score, the 4th time in a row they would have won with that score.
But then the Padres loaded the bases with 1 out in the 7th and Tony Clark pinch hitting. But, instead of breaking opening a tie game, Clark grounded weakly to first, forcing the runner at home. This was followed (predictably) by a strikeout. And so it goes.
Around the 8th inning, I started asking my friend how many walk-off games we have seen live. I had seen two: Scott Hairston last year against Pittsburgh in September and 3 years ago I saw Joe Crede walk off a game in Chicago for the White Sox. My friend had seen more, but he is a Yankee fan so his opportunities were greater anyway.
Padres failed to get it done in the 9th inning, then survived a bit of an erratic pitching performance in the 10th by Adams to bring the top of the order up. Honestly, I looked past Hairston's at-bat, seeing Giles and AGon coming up. They never made it. Hairston hit a bomb to the deepest part of the field, ending the game and doubling the amount of times I've seen the Padres walk-off with a homerun, both by Hairston of all things. Padres win 2-1. For the fourth time in a row, for the first time ever in MLB history. A weird, obscure record, but a record nonetheless.
More importantly, the Padres have won 4 in a row against quality teams. They've begun winning the close, low scoring games that were such a staple of past Padre teams, and on Thursday, Jake Peavy returns.
One final note from the game last night. Justin Huber. I like the guy. I think it's cool to have an Aussie on the team. What on earth was that throw home? Wow. He looked very lost in left last night and at the plate. But no, let's keep Headley in Portland (who by the way went 3-5 yesterday).
Padres go for the sweep of the Mets today with Ledezema on the mound.
But then the Padres loaded the bases with 1 out in the 7th and Tony Clark pinch hitting. But, instead of breaking opening a tie game, Clark grounded weakly to first, forcing the runner at home. This was followed (predictably) by a strikeout. And so it goes.
Around the 8th inning, I started asking my friend how many walk-off games we have seen live. I had seen two: Scott Hairston last year against Pittsburgh in September and 3 years ago I saw Joe Crede walk off a game in Chicago for the White Sox. My friend had seen more, but he is a Yankee fan so his opportunities were greater anyway.
Padres failed to get it done in the 9th inning, then survived a bit of an erratic pitching performance in the 10th by Adams to bring the top of the order up. Honestly, I looked past Hairston's at-bat, seeing Giles and AGon coming up. They never made it. Hairston hit a bomb to the deepest part of the field, ending the game and doubling the amount of times I've seen the Padres walk-off with a homerun, both by Hairston of all things. Padres win 2-1. For the fourth time in a row, for the first time ever in MLB history. A weird, obscure record, but a record nonetheless.
More importantly, the Padres have won 4 in a row against quality teams. They've begun winning the close, low scoring games that were such a staple of past Padre teams, and on Thursday, Jake Peavy returns.
One final note from the game last night. Justin Huber. I like the guy. I think it's cool to have an Aussie on the team. What on earth was that throw home? Wow. He looked very lost in left last night and at the plate. But no, let's keep Headley in Portland (who by the way went 3-5 yesterday).
Padres go for the sweep of the Mets today with Ledezema on the mound.
Friday, May 23, 2008
Do Not Go Gently Into That Good Night
I return today after an 11 day hiatus to finish finals, begin an internship and entertain out-of-town guests. So, what have I missed?
- Jake Peavy was placed on the DL and the optimistic approach appears to be about 6 weeks on the shelf. This is devastating obviously but that devastation is tempered somewhat by being 12.5 games back. Essentially what I'm saying is, its not as if the Padres need him right now. And if this thing doesn't get turned around (and quickly) there is no reason to rush him back. I posted here a few weeks (months?) ago that Peavy's pitch counts I thought were abnormally high for this early in the season. Now he has a sore elbow. Maybe it's connected. Maybe whatever Prior has is contagious. Either way, Peavy is out.
- And now, so is Chris Young. If you watched or were at the game on Wednesday, the scene was something out of a horror movie. I saw the ball hit off CY, but wasn't sure where. His back was turned to the camera on Channel 4 and when he turned around a stream of blood was running down his face. Very Wes Craven. It appears he fractured his nose and will miss at least one or two starts.
- 10 minutes later, Josh Bard was knocked out with a high ankle sprain. The culprit in both incidents? Albert Pujols. I must say though, Pujols was pretty classy regarding the CY incident, saying in the paper that he "would have rather grounded into a double play then to have that happen."
- This obviously necessitated some moves by the front office which meant FINALLY Chase Headley would be brought...wait...what? Oh, no Chase is still in Portland. It's not about his salary though...no way...definitely not.
- The Padres find themselves 12.5 games back yet in the last two weeks have shown some semblance of competitiveness which I imagine is encouraging. What isn't is having the top two pitchers knocked out and having no catcher with big league experience.
- Trade rumors abound and the thought is that absent a major turn around, major trades will be made. Brian Giles contract ends at the end of this year so one would have to think he is on the block.
- Did I mention that Chase Headley is not up with the club yet?
- Ever the optimist, I can say that the NL as a whole is not exactly lighting the world on fire. Also, there is recent precedence for teams turning it around in the second half (Astros, Mariners, etc). It's possible. So I say, do not go gently into that good night...yet.
* Apologies to Dylan Thomas
- Jake Peavy was placed on the DL and the optimistic approach appears to be about 6 weeks on the shelf. This is devastating obviously but that devastation is tempered somewhat by being 12.5 games back. Essentially what I'm saying is, its not as if the Padres need him right now. And if this thing doesn't get turned around (and quickly) there is no reason to rush him back. I posted here a few weeks (months?) ago that Peavy's pitch counts I thought were abnormally high for this early in the season. Now he has a sore elbow. Maybe it's connected. Maybe whatever Prior has is contagious. Either way, Peavy is out.
- And now, so is Chris Young. If you watched or were at the game on Wednesday, the scene was something out of a horror movie. I saw the ball hit off CY, but wasn't sure where. His back was turned to the camera on Channel 4 and when he turned around a stream of blood was running down his face. Very Wes Craven. It appears he fractured his nose and will miss at least one or two starts.
- 10 minutes later, Josh Bard was knocked out with a high ankle sprain. The culprit in both incidents? Albert Pujols. I must say though, Pujols was pretty classy regarding the CY incident, saying in the paper that he "would have rather grounded into a double play then to have that happen."
- This obviously necessitated some moves by the front office which meant FINALLY Chase Headley would be brought...wait...what? Oh, no Chase is still in Portland. It's not about his salary though...no way...definitely not.
- The Padres find themselves 12.5 games back yet in the last two weeks have shown some semblance of competitiveness which I imagine is encouraging. What isn't is having the top two pitchers knocked out and having no catcher with big league experience.
- Trade rumors abound and the thought is that absent a major turn around, major trades will be made. Brian Giles contract ends at the end of this year so one would have to think he is on the block.
- Did I mention that Chase Headley is not up with the club yet?
- Ever the optimist, I can say that the NL as a whole is not exactly lighting the world on fire. Also, there is recent precedence for teams turning it around in the second half (Astros, Mariners, etc). It's possible. So I say, do not go gently into that good night...yet.
* Apologies to Dylan Thomas
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Fight the Apathy!!!!
The title to today's post is taken from Sullivan's article today in the U-T. In that article, Sullivan points out that the time to make changes on this team is now, while fans are angry but paying attention. As is often the case in San Diego, apathy can set in quickly and the fastest way to drive your fans off the cliff and into oblivion...a 12-22 record.
Fear not, change is on its way. So we've been told. Kevin Towers has said publicly that changes will be made once the team returns from there East Coast trip. What will those changes be? That's anyone's guess, but based on KT's public admonishment of Jim Edmonds skills yesterday on Sports Radio 1090XX one would have to assume it involves Edmonds. Probably not a great sign that Crabbe pinch hit for Edmonds last night in the 9th.
NOTE: As has often been said in this space, Edmonds should not be batting 5th. He's not today and the Padres just scored 2 in the first. Talk about small sample size but still...
Ledezema gets the start this morning in Atlanta, giving Peavy a day off. Headley is beginning to rake in Portland and Jacques Jones is still unemployed (and sadly, I think designed for a Towers pick-up...let's hope Towers learned his lesson about putting aging, offensively challenged in important positions in the field.
Finals continue so a short post. Mostly to tell you I'm still here and still following the team, although with studying, not as diligently as I was. If/when moves are made this week or next, I will let you know.
Fear not, change is on its way. So we've been told. Kevin Towers has said publicly that changes will be made once the team returns from there East Coast trip. What will those changes be? That's anyone's guess, but based on KT's public admonishment of Jim Edmonds skills yesterday on Sports Radio 1090XX one would have to assume it involves Edmonds. Probably not a great sign that Crabbe pinch hit for Edmonds last night in the 9th.
NOTE: As has often been said in this space, Edmonds should not be batting 5th. He's not today and the Padres just scored 2 in the first. Talk about small sample size but still...
Ledezema gets the start this morning in Atlanta, giving Peavy a day off. Headley is beginning to rake in Portland and Jacques Jones is still unemployed (and sadly, I think designed for a Towers pick-up...let's hope Towers learned his lesson about putting aging, offensively challenged in important positions in the field.
Finals continue so a short post. Mostly to tell you I'm still here and still following the team, although with studying, not as diligently as I was. If/when moves are made this week or next, I will let you know.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Daylight Offense; National League Strategy
Two topics to cover today.
1) An often repeated "stat" about the Padres offense is that they hit better during day games. A few reasons for this theory are: players can see the ball better during the day; marine layer hasn't come in yet thus the ball travels better during the day.
I for one had subscribed to this theory myself. It seems relatively obvious that the ball will travel better if there isn't a bunch of sea water in the air. But do the numbers back up this theory? This past weekend the Padres played two day games, scoring 8 in one (a win) and 1 in the other (a loss).
A brief look at the Padres batting average in 2007 in day and night games does not show a similar advantage however. (Recognize that the stats compiled are for "day" games thus some of these games were not played at Petco, the point will be relatively the same).
Padres 2007 Day Games BA: .250; Padres 2007 Night Games: .251. Hardly a difference at all, and surprisingly, a better average at night (made more surprising by how many more night games they play generally).
Ok, but that's only BA. Perhaps a better test of offensive prowess would be to see the overall runs scored. So, let's take a look:
Day Runs Scored Avg: 4.5; Night Runs Scored Avg: 4.56. Again, no difference and if anything, a better average at night.
So do these numbers hold up in 2008 (recognizing the extremely small sample size).
2008 Padres BA at Night: .218; 2008 Padres Batting Average Day: .240. This is a substantial difference. However, I may add with the small sample size, the offensive output on Saturday may skew this number. Moreover, the lack of offense in the 22-inning game will likely skew the night numbers. Still, pretty big difference.
And Runs Scored:
2008 Padres Runs Scored Avg Night: 2.6; 2008 Padres Runs Scored Avg Day: 4.5
This is substantial and supports the theory that the higher temperatures during the day produce better offense. As all the Padres day games this year have taken place in 2008, and, as is common in San Diego at night, the marine layer comes in every night, its reasonable to equate the two.
Ultimately though, the Padres place a vast majority of games at night, so learning to hit during the evening hours is paramount.
National League Strategy
Not to sound like a broken record here but, Peavy pitched beyond admirable only to be tagged with the loss on Sunday thanks to one bad pitch. One 2-run homerun and the game was lost. What's worst is when the homerun was hit, there was a feeling that the Padres had just lost the game. Why? In part, their offense, which struggles on it's own. It struggles more when facing Brandon Webb, as it did on Sunday. But that's not to say the Padres were without chances, none better than the chance they had in the bottom of the 6th yesterday.
The Padres had loaded the bases with one out on two singles and a walk. This brought up the precarious situation of having the pitcher hit or pinch hit for him. At this point, Peavy was cruising along and, aside from one bad pitch, had pitched lights out. Still, at this juncture in the game, the Padres were down 1, 2-1 and the tying run was a mere fly-ball away from scoring. Bud Black elected to pitch Peavy.
In and of itself, I don't have a problem with this for a number of reasons. One, the bullpen needed rest. 4 extra-inning games will do that. Two, Peavy for a pitcher can handle the bat. Greene was the runner on third and so I thought while watching "hey, why not a safety squeeze." This appeared to be the idea as Peavy squared on the first pitch, taken for a ball. Ultimately, he struck out, Brian Giles grounded out and the inning was over.
This situation comes up a lot in the National League. The likely pinch hitter, Tony Clark, is certainly a better hitter than Peavy. If it were me, and my team was struggling to score off a great pitcher like Webb, I would pinch-hit. Monday is an off day so the bullpen will have that day to rest. The difference is one inning so I hardly think that one inning would save anyone in the bullpen. Moreover, against a Cy Young candidate, you don't waste your best scoring opportunity by having the pitcher hit, no matter how he is throwing on the mound. In the end, Peavy could have thrown a shutout for the remaining innings and it still would not have mattered without at least scoring the run from third in the 6th. When it goes wrong, it all goes wrong I suppose.
Edmonds
A now regular portion of the blog...Jim Edmonds should NEVER hit 5th in this lineup!!!!
Now that that is off my chest.
Padres take on the Phillies next on Tuesday. Full preview tomorrow.
1) An often repeated "stat" about the Padres offense is that they hit better during day games. A few reasons for this theory are: players can see the ball better during the day; marine layer hasn't come in yet thus the ball travels better during the day.
I for one had subscribed to this theory myself. It seems relatively obvious that the ball will travel better if there isn't a bunch of sea water in the air. But do the numbers back up this theory? This past weekend the Padres played two day games, scoring 8 in one (a win) and 1 in the other (a loss).
A brief look at the Padres batting average in 2007 in day and night games does not show a similar advantage however. (Recognize that the stats compiled are for "day" games thus some of these games were not played at Petco, the point will be relatively the same).
Padres 2007 Day Games BA: .250; Padres 2007 Night Games: .251. Hardly a difference at all, and surprisingly, a better average at night (made more surprising by how many more night games they play generally).
Ok, but that's only BA. Perhaps a better test of offensive prowess would be to see the overall runs scored. So, let's take a look:
Day Runs Scored Avg: 4.5; Night Runs Scored Avg: 4.56. Again, no difference and if anything, a better average at night.
So do these numbers hold up in 2008 (recognizing the extremely small sample size).
2008 Padres BA at Night: .218; 2008 Padres Batting Average Day: .240. This is a substantial difference. However, I may add with the small sample size, the offensive output on Saturday may skew this number. Moreover, the lack of offense in the 22-inning game will likely skew the night numbers. Still, pretty big difference.
And Runs Scored:
2008 Padres Runs Scored Avg Night: 2.6; 2008 Padres Runs Scored Avg Day: 4.5
This is substantial and supports the theory that the higher temperatures during the day produce better offense. As all the Padres day games this year have taken place in 2008, and, as is common in San Diego at night, the marine layer comes in every night, its reasonable to equate the two.
Ultimately though, the Padres place a vast majority of games at night, so learning to hit during the evening hours is paramount.
National League Strategy
Not to sound like a broken record here but, Peavy pitched beyond admirable only to be tagged with the loss on Sunday thanks to one bad pitch. One 2-run homerun and the game was lost. What's worst is when the homerun was hit, there was a feeling that the Padres had just lost the game. Why? In part, their offense, which struggles on it's own. It struggles more when facing Brandon Webb, as it did on Sunday. But that's not to say the Padres were without chances, none better than the chance they had in the bottom of the 6th yesterday.
The Padres had loaded the bases with one out on two singles and a walk. This brought up the precarious situation of having the pitcher hit or pinch hit for him. At this point, Peavy was cruising along and, aside from one bad pitch, had pitched lights out. Still, at this juncture in the game, the Padres were down 1, 2-1 and the tying run was a mere fly-ball away from scoring. Bud Black elected to pitch Peavy.
In and of itself, I don't have a problem with this for a number of reasons. One, the bullpen needed rest. 4 extra-inning games will do that. Two, Peavy for a pitcher can handle the bat. Greene was the runner on third and so I thought while watching "hey, why not a safety squeeze." This appeared to be the idea as Peavy squared on the first pitch, taken for a ball. Ultimately, he struck out, Brian Giles grounded out and the inning was over.
This situation comes up a lot in the National League. The likely pinch hitter, Tony Clark, is certainly a better hitter than Peavy. If it were me, and my team was struggling to score off a great pitcher like Webb, I would pinch-hit. Monday is an off day so the bullpen will have that day to rest. The difference is one inning so I hardly think that one inning would save anyone in the bullpen. Moreover, against a Cy Young candidate, you don't waste your best scoring opportunity by having the pitcher hit, no matter how he is throwing on the mound. In the end, Peavy could have thrown a shutout for the remaining innings and it still would not have mattered without at least scoring the run from third in the 6th. When it goes wrong, it all goes wrong I suppose.
Edmonds
A now regular portion of the blog...Jim Edmonds should NEVER hit 5th in this lineup!!!!
Now that that is off my chest.
Padres take on the Phillies next on Tuesday. Full preview tomorrow.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Where Have You Gone Bullpen?
The other day someone asked me whether it was "time to panic." My initial, gut reaction was no, absolutely not, its way to early. Keep in mind I said this with this in mind: Peavy was pitching tonight, against the Astros, followed by the Giants coming to San Diego.
Well...Peavy pitched admirably. Pedestrian by his own, astronomical standards. 6 IP, 4 ER, 2 SO. More indicative of his performance was where the Padres were when Peavy left. Down 4-3.
Black went to Thatcher who quickly gave up 3 runs, missing his spots badly. In a park like Minute Maid Park against a lineup such as the Astros, missing your spots is a recipe for disaster. This ran the score to 7-3.
Unlike what has happened often this season however, the Padres fought back. PMac went deep, and AGon did his best Charger impersonation at home. A 4 run 8th inning had tied the game and Heath Bell was coming in. Finally, the Padres had a game set-up as they would want it. I was going to argue a few days ago that the Padres unusually high bullpen ERA was more a case of mop-up guys getting knocked around (Rusch, Ledezma, etc.).
Heath Bell gave up 4 runs, putting the game out of reach, and the fans into panic mode.
So to answer the question that began this post, "is it time to panic?" Yes.
But hang on...it's April after all. How many times have fans seen things take place in April that never pan out (Shelley Duncan of Detroit, I'm looking at you). So let's review the Padres last three years and see how important April really is:
2005 (note: the Padres won the division with an 82-80 record):
April Record: 11-13; Most Games Under .500: 4 games under, on April 27. What drove that team to the playoffs was a 22-6 May and a winning record in 1-run games 29-20.
2006 (won division with an 88-74 record):
April Record: 9-15; Most Games Under .500: 7, on April 29. Perhaps most interesting was the team ERA of April: 4.57.
2007 (finished third with an 89-74 record):
April Record: 13-13; never under .500.
NOTE: statistics provided by http://www.baseball-reference.com/
I guess my point is this. In the past three years, the Padres have never left April with a winning record. Currently they are sitting at 9-12. They have a run differential of -28 and a bullpen ERA of 5.54.
So, time to panic, or just another April in San Diego? Time will tell, but my money is on history, and history dictates that the Padres play extremely well in May. For now, the panic button will be put away...for now.
Coming Up
Another bizarre two game series coming up, this time against the Giants. Maddux goes for win 350 tonight. Lucky for us, we get Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum. Sometimes its not stats, its luck.
Well...Peavy pitched admirably. Pedestrian by his own, astronomical standards. 6 IP, 4 ER, 2 SO. More indicative of his performance was where the Padres were when Peavy left. Down 4-3.
Black went to Thatcher who quickly gave up 3 runs, missing his spots badly. In a park like Minute Maid Park against a lineup such as the Astros, missing your spots is a recipe for disaster. This ran the score to 7-3.
Unlike what has happened often this season however, the Padres fought back. PMac went deep, and AGon did his best Charger impersonation at home. A 4 run 8th inning had tied the game and Heath Bell was coming in. Finally, the Padres had a game set-up as they would want it. I was going to argue a few days ago that the Padres unusually high bullpen ERA was more a case of mop-up guys getting knocked around (Rusch, Ledezma, etc.).
Heath Bell gave up 4 runs, putting the game out of reach, and the fans into panic mode.
So to answer the question that began this post, "is it time to panic?" Yes.
But hang on...it's April after all. How many times have fans seen things take place in April that never pan out (Shelley Duncan of Detroit, I'm looking at you). So let's review the Padres last three years and see how important April really is:
2005 (note: the Padres won the division with an 82-80 record):
April Record: 11-13; Most Games Under .500: 4 games under, on April 27. What drove that team to the playoffs was a 22-6 May and a winning record in 1-run games 29-20.
2006 (won division with an 88-74 record):
April Record: 9-15; Most Games Under .500: 7, on April 29. Perhaps most interesting was the team ERA of April: 4.57.
2007 (finished third with an 89-74 record):
April Record: 13-13; never under .500.
NOTE: statistics provided by http://www.baseball-reference.com/
I guess my point is this. In the past three years, the Padres have never left April with a winning record. Currently they are sitting at 9-12. They have a run differential of -28 and a bullpen ERA of 5.54.
So, time to panic, or just another April in San Diego? Time will tell, but my money is on history, and history dictates that the Padres play extremely well in May. For now, the panic button will be put away...for now.
Coming Up
Another bizarre two game series coming up, this time against the Giants. Maddux goes for win 350 tonight. Lucky for us, we get Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum. Sometimes its not stats, its luck.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Bring on the Ram Head!
"That's it, I'm going to bed."
Said that to myself last night at least a half a dozen times. The only time I listened was around 1:20am, when Glendon Rusch looked at a called third to end the longest game in Padres franchise history.
22 innings, 6 hours and 16 mins and 3 (YES 3!) seventh inning stretches later, two throwing errors lead to the Rockies scoring the first run for any team since the 14th inning to win, 2-1.
So let's go through some of the wackiness that was April 17/18, 2008:
- 22 innings: longest in either teams franchise history. Only 9 games in major league history have lasted longer. 4 more innings and we would have had a MLB record!
- 6 hours and 16 mins missed the franchise record for time of a game by 1 min. If Rusch gets on base...
- 658 total pitches thrown. 5 innings of relief were thrown by Ledezema, good enough to register for the win in a normal game!
- Not only did the game last 22 innings, the game did not have its first run until the 14th inning. The Rockies scored first with a bases loaded walk. Cameron had pitched himself into some trouble but appeared to had pitched himself right out of it. Inducing an infield fly for the second out, on a 2-2 pitch Cameron threw a fastball that according to my Gamecast and my own eyes, was right down the middle. Called ball 3. Next pitch walked him and on we went. This inning came one inning after the Padres had squandered a chance to win it. Paul McAnulty hit a scorching line drive down the first base line to lead off the bottom of the 13th inning. After an apparent bobble in right field, PMac went for third. Was he sent by Glenn Hoffman? Replays showed PMac staring Hoffman down as he rounded second and chirping at him after he was thrown out. Either way, poor baserunning again cost San Diego a run.
- In the 18th inning, and for reasons I yet don't understand, members of the Padres (including Jake Peavy) found a stuffed dead (if its stuffed I hope its dead) rams head that they taped to the dugout...I got nothing on this.
- The Padres have now gone 94 innings without a home run. According to Baseball-Reference.com, the longest such streak by any team is 20 games, or, assuming none of those games went extra-innings, 180 innings. The Houston Astros hold this dubious distinction, a record that was set between 9-2-1979 through 9-23-1979. Put another way, those Astros went 686 AB's without a HR. They went 9-11 in those 20 games.
- Lost in this game was the work of Jake Peavy, who threw 8 innings last night of shut-out ball and struck out 11. That's 25 strikeouts on the year so far and an ERA of 1.20. I'll save the "over-working Jake in April" rant for another time.
Coming Up:
Somehow the Padres now have to go play the scorching Arizona Diamondbacks, beginning a three-game series tonight in Phoenix. Greg Maddux will go for win 350 tonight against Dan Haren; Chris Young gets his start pushed back a day and will go on Saturday against Edgar Gonzalez; and on Sunday, Randy Wolf goes up against the Big Unit. It is likely that Colt Morton will get his first start tonight at catcher, considering Bard went all 22 innings last night.
I have no earthly idea how to handicap this series. Let's just hope for the best.
I'll leave you with two final thoughts. Petco stops serving beer after the 7th inning, or, 15 innings before last nights game ended.
3 7TH INNING STRETCHES!
To sleep, perchance to dream.
Said that to myself last night at least a half a dozen times. The only time I listened was around 1:20am, when Glendon Rusch looked at a called third to end the longest game in Padres franchise history.
22 innings, 6 hours and 16 mins and 3 (YES 3!) seventh inning stretches later, two throwing errors lead to the Rockies scoring the first run for any team since the 14th inning to win, 2-1.
So let's go through some of the wackiness that was April 17/18, 2008:
- 22 innings: longest in either teams franchise history. Only 9 games in major league history have lasted longer. 4 more innings and we would have had a MLB record!
- 6 hours and 16 mins missed the franchise record for time of a game by 1 min. If Rusch gets on base...
- 658 total pitches thrown. 5 innings of relief were thrown by Ledezema, good enough to register for the win in a normal game!
- Not only did the game last 22 innings, the game did not have its first run until the 14th inning. The Rockies scored first with a bases loaded walk. Cameron had pitched himself into some trouble but appeared to had pitched himself right out of it. Inducing an infield fly for the second out, on a 2-2 pitch Cameron threw a fastball that according to my Gamecast and my own eyes, was right down the middle. Called ball 3. Next pitch walked him and on we went. This inning came one inning after the Padres had squandered a chance to win it. Paul McAnulty hit a scorching line drive down the first base line to lead off the bottom of the 13th inning. After an apparent bobble in right field, PMac went for third. Was he sent by Glenn Hoffman? Replays showed PMac staring Hoffman down as he rounded second and chirping at him after he was thrown out. Either way, poor baserunning again cost San Diego a run.
- In the 18th inning, and for reasons I yet don't understand, members of the Padres (including Jake Peavy) found a stuffed dead (if its stuffed I hope its dead) rams head that they taped to the dugout...I got nothing on this.
- The Padres have now gone 94 innings without a home run. According to Baseball-Reference.com, the longest such streak by any team is 20 games, or, assuming none of those games went extra-innings, 180 innings. The Houston Astros hold this dubious distinction, a record that was set between 9-2-1979 through 9-23-1979. Put another way, those Astros went 686 AB's without a HR. They went 9-11 in those 20 games.
- Lost in this game was the work of Jake Peavy, who threw 8 innings last night of shut-out ball and struck out 11. That's 25 strikeouts on the year so far and an ERA of 1.20. I'll save the "over-working Jake in April" rant for another time.
Coming Up:
Somehow the Padres now have to go play the scorching Arizona Diamondbacks, beginning a three-game series tonight in Phoenix. Greg Maddux will go for win 350 tonight against Dan Haren; Chris Young gets his start pushed back a day and will go on Saturday against Edgar Gonzalez; and on Sunday, Randy Wolf goes up against the Big Unit. It is likely that Colt Morton will get his first start tonight at catcher, considering Bard went all 22 innings last night.
I have no earthly idea how to handicap this series. Let's just hope for the best.
I'll leave you with two final thoughts. Petco stops serving beer after the 7th inning, or, 15 innings before last nights game ended.
3 7TH INNING STRETCHES!
To sleep, perchance to dream.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
The Return of Rocktober
There exists in the world only five games that I consider to be so heartbreaking that I both can't forget them and want only to forget them. They are, in no particular order:
1) Arizona vs Illinois, Elite Eight, 2006 - Arizona blows a double digit lead with 4 mins to play.
2) Chargers vs Patriots, Divisional Round, 2007 - Another blown lead late, erasing a 14-2 season.
3) Padres vs Yankees, Games 1-4, 1998 World Series - No one wants to be swept
4) Padres vs Brewers, Game 161, 2007 - Trevor blows the save, Tony Gwynn Jr. hits a triple.
and number 5....
5) Padres vs Rockies, Game 163, 2007...
Game 163 was perhaps the most nervous I had ever been watching any sporting event, live or on television. The entire day, all I could think about was the game. As confident as I was on the outside ("Peavy's on the mound, its in the bag!") I was a ball of nerves inside. I didn't relax at any point during the game, counting down the amount of outs that were left. Peavy didn't have his ace stuff and the Padres fell behind early. I woke the neighbors when Adrian hit his grand slam to make it a new game, screamed at the t.v. while watching Brady Clark "play" center field, and was ready to pop the bubbly thanks to Scott Hairston's 13th inning home run. For a game with so many ups and downs, it seemed that the Padres had finally stuck the dagger in the heart of the Rockies. Or so I thought...
When you have watched Trevor Hoffman for as long as I have, you know when you're in for a long night. You can tell from the beginning of an inning. A hard hit double that you try to convince yourself doesn't matter because you lead by 2. But you know, he doesn't have it tonight, and you hope they hit it at someone. And then there was the now infamous slide. Did Matt Holliday touch home? Well, you know my answer to that.
So here we are, April 15th, 2008, and for the first time since that night in Denver, the Padres play the Rockies. Does it have the feel of a Padres/Dodgers series? Not quite, but there are enough Padres fans out there who have a very bitter taste in their mouth from Game 163 and the controversial way it ended. So perhaps we should look at Game 163 for the positive it has created...a new rivalry in the NL West. It may be too early to say this is a big series, but this is a big series.
- ESPN The Magazine has a great article on Greg Maddux in which this story was recounted (paraphrased): As a member of the Dodgers, Brad Penny believed that Maddux knew Penny's pitches better then he did. So one night Penny had Maddux call the entire game for him. Penny would glance into the dugout between pitches, get the sign, and throw. And he did throw, 7 innings, shutout.
- Speaking of ESPN The Magazine, Bill Simmons (aka The Sports Guy) wrote in his column this month that Barry Bonds was the "best hitter since Ted Williams." Now while the article had to do with the deafening silence that has met the news that Bonds is unemployed currently, I would like to draw a bit of an issue with the term "best hitter since Ted Williams." .338 Lifetime BA, 8 Batting Titles, over 3,000 hits and 19 consecutive seasons over .300 beg to differ with that title being given to Barry Bonds. Need further proof? SI already crowned such a person in this cover:
This is the Best Hitter Since Ted Williams. Consistent, a student of the game, and, to use Ryne Sandburg's term, he did it "the right way."
- Rockies fans are not afraid of Trevor Hoffman and are convinced Holliday was safe as evident here: http://www.purplerow.com/
- The Padres offense has managed only 2 runs in their last two games. More will be needed to beat a very potent Colorado lineup.
- Pitching Matchup for the Series: Jimenez vs Wolf; Redman vs Germano; Francis vs Peavy
- Bud Black has this to say about the recent struggles of Trevor Hoffman (who, it is worth noting, still has 4 saves already in this young season):
"Like I've said, it looks like his overall stuff is there," Black said. "For whatever reason the location is off 3-4-5-6 inches. ... He's hitting the glove. He just must be off a little."
- Finally, the pick. I'll take Peavy over Francis on Thursday, Wolf has looked good so far so let's take him on Tuesday and Germano has yet to give up a run. Wednesday he gets his first win of the season. Padres sweep and drink from the glass of revenge!
1) Arizona vs Illinois, Elite Eight, 2006 - Arizona blows a double digit lead with 4 mins to play.
2) Chargers vs Patriots, Divisional Round, 2007 - Another blown lead late, erasing a 14-2 season.
3) Padres vs Yankees, Games 1-4, 1998 World Series - No one wants to be swept
4) Padres vs Brewers, Game 161, 2007 - Trevor blows the save, Tony Gwynn Jr. hits a triple.
and number 5....
5) Padres vs Rockies, Game 163, 2007...
Game 163 was perhaps the most nervous I had ever been watching any sporting event, live or on television. The entire day, all I could think about was the game. As confident as I was on the outside ("Peavy's on the mound, its in the bag!") I was a ball of nerves inside. I didn't relax at any point during the game, counting down the amount of outs that were left. Peavy didn't have his ace stuff and the Padres fell behind early. I woke the neighbors when Adrian hit his grand slam to make it a new game, screamed at the t.v. while watching Brady Clark "play" center field, and was ready to pop the bubbly thanks to Scott Hairston's 13th inning home run. For a game with so many ups and downs, it seemed that the Padres had finally stuck the dagger in the heart of the Rockies. Or so I thought...
When you have watched Trevor Hoffman for as long as I have, you know when you're in for a long night. You can tell from the beginning of an inning. A hard hit double that you try to convince yourself doesn't matter because you lead by 2. But you know, he doesn't have it tonight, and you hope they hit it at someone. And then there was the now infamous slide. Did Matt Holliday touch home? Well, you know my answer to that.
So here we are, April 15th, 2008, and for the first time since that night in Denver, the Padres play the Rockies. Does it have the feel of a Padres/Dodgers series? Not quite, but there are enough Padres fans out there who have a very bitter taste in their mouth from Game 163 and the controversial way it ended. So perhaps we should look at Game 163 for the positive it has created...a new rivalry in the NL West. It may be too early to say this is a big series, but this is a big series.
- ESPN The Magazine has a great article on Greg Maddux in which this story was recounted (paraphrased): As a member of the Dodgers, Brad Penny believed that Maddux knew Penny's pitches better then he did. So one night Penny had Maddux call the entire game for him. Penny would glance into the dugout between pitches, get the sign, and throw. And he did throw, 7 innings, shutout.
- Speaking of ESPN The Magazine, Bill Simmons (aka The Sports Guy) wrote in his column this month that Barry Bonds was the "best hitter since Ted Williams." Now while the article had to do with the deafening silence that has met the news that Bonds is unemployed currently, I would like to draw a bit of an issue with the term "best hitter since Ted Williams." .338 Lifetime BA, 8 Batting Titles, over 3,000 hits and 19 consecutive seasons over .300 beg to differ with that title being given to Barry Bonds. Need further proof? SI already crowned such a person in this cover:
This is the Best Hitter Since Ted Williams. Consistent, a student of the game, and, to use Ryne Sandburg's term, he did it "the right way."
- Rockies fans are not afraid of Trevor Hoffman and are convinced Holliday was safe as evident here: http://www.purplerow.com/
- The Padres offense has managed only 2 runs in their last two games. More will be needed to beat a very potent Colorado lineup.
- Pitching Matchup for the Series: Jimenez vs Wolf; Redman vs Germano; Francis vs Peavy
- Bud Black has this to say about the recent struggles of Trevor Hoffman (who, it is worth noting, still has 4 saves already in this young season):
"Like I've said, it looks like his overall stuff is there," Black said. "For whatever reason the location is off 3-4-5-6 inches. ... He's hitting the glove. He just must be off a little."
- Finally, the pick. I'll take Peavy over Francis on Thursday, Wolf has looked good so far so let's take him on Tuesday and Germano has yet to give up a run. Wednesday he gets his first win of the season. Padres sweep and drink from the glass of revenge!
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