Left Coast Bias

Opening Day Musings

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 15:51:00 +0000

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!

Dining at Petco

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 16:02:00 +0000

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!

Moorad Looser with the Purse Strings?

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 19:21:00 +0000

Scott Boras believes that Jeff Moorad will be more willing to spend money than his predecessor, John Moores.

“I think there's going to be a heavy Jeff Moorad footprint,” said Scott Boras, the most powerful of player agents.

The lack of productive drafts in recent years by the Padres has been a well documented topic. However, at least anecdotal, that failure can be connected to John Moores unwillingness to draft Boras clients. The most notable being the draft in which the Padres took Matt Bush instead of either Stephen Drew or Jered Weaver, both players that Padres scouts liked more than Bush, and both who were represented by Boras.

Matt Bush now has a warrant out for beating up high school kids in East County and is in the Toronto Blue Jays system while Drew and Weaver are productive major league players.

Boras also represents this years clear number one college player, SDSU pitcher Stephen Strasburg. While Strasburg is likely out of the picture for San Diego, Boras does represent more top of the line players in this draft than any other agent. With no Sandy Alderson or John Moores, Moorad and his team will have the chance to improve on the lackluster first-round picks of recent Padres history, that include: Ben Davis, Sean Burroughs, Mark Phillips, Tim Stauffer and Matt Bush. The Padres pick third this year.

Whether any of this comes true will not be known for some time but an early indication could be found in the Padres first round pick this year.

According to Boras, the difference in philosophy is a difference of money: “What is interesting about the philosophies is that Jeff's philosophy is, 'We're going to take the best available player and pay him appropriately because they have the best value.' In John's case, it was, 'We are only going to pay a particular amount of money, and let's find a player who will take it.'

A New Sheriff in Town

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 01:03:00 +0000

Things have been a little quiet for the most part on the Padres front. They are terrible in Spring Training (5-17), the U.S. was eliminated from the WBC (eventually won by Japan again in an extremely entertaining game), and the Padres starting rotation is still terrible (more on that in a moment).

However, off in the distant, far off on the horizon there lies a speck of light worth mentioning. Jeff Moorad is officially the new Padres CEO. This marks the first major step in the transfer of power from John Moores to Jeff Moorad. What this also means is that Sandy Alderson is officially out as the Padres CEO. I remember when Alderson came to San Diego and the excitement that I had for such a move. Afterall, Alderson had helped create the moneyball Oakland A's and they were ALWAYS in the playoffs. Of course, Alderson now leaves after the Padres suffered their worst season in nearly a decade, their worst season since Petco Park opened and a minor league system ranked dead last by Baseball America.

So, who is Jeff Moorad?

A graduate of UCLA with a law degree from Villanova, Jeff Moorad has 25 years of professional sports experience. He began as a player's agent with Steinberg and Moorad and later the Moorad Sports Management. He has represented players such as Will Clark, Steve Young, Shawn Green and Manny Ramirez. In 2005 he purchased an ownership share of the Arizona Diamondbacks which he must now sale before the the Padres deal can go through.

Much of the turmoil that the Padres faced coming off their 99 loss season was attributed to the uncertainty over the ownership of the Padres. With John and Becky Moores entangled in divorce preceedings, questions have surrounded the Padres for nearly a year. Today, if nothing else, it is clear who is now in charge of the San Diego Padres.

Now, about that pitching staff...it's bad. I'll do a full post on it but needless to say, the Padres are 10 days from opening day with no idea who their 4th and 5th starters are and only two arms in the bullpen that they have any confidence in (Cla Meredith and Heath Bell). At least the food is cheap this year at Petco.

Post-St. Patty's Day Post

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:08:00 +0000

So, for a few weeks now I have been touting the World Baseball Classic. I've argued it's legitimacy, it's place in the U.S. sports conscious, trying to get people excited for it as I was. Then, St. Patrick's Day hit and I missed, by far, the best game for the U.S. in the WBC since it's inception.

Fail.

The U.S. team, rebounding from an embarrassing 11-1 thumping came back to beat the Netherlands to survive. Then yesterday, in a second elimination game, the U.S. team, down 5-3 in the bottom of the 9th score 3 runs. 1 on a base on balls and than a 2 run single by David Wright to propel the U.S. team, left for dead less than a week ago, onto the semi-finals in Los Angeles. And I missed it.

Fail Again.

However, what this does mean is that the U.S. team plays on, granting all those who missed last nights heroics more opportunity to watch this team.

In other WBC news, Mexico was eliminated on Monday night. The bright side to that is of course, the Gonzalez brothers (Adrian and Edgar) will head back to Padres camp with Scott Hairston.

Now, onto some Padres news.

In the last post I mentioned how Kyle Banks was tearing up the Cactus League at first base while Adrian was away at the WBC. Currently, Banks is hitting a crisp .341 with 3 HR's and 9 RBI. But there is that small, Gold-Glove winning, All-Star in front of him at first who is not likely to be going anywhere soon. So, the question has been posed: What about moving Banks to the Outfield? Corey Brock, who blogs for the Padres at http://coreybrock.mlblogs.com/ asked Kevin Towers this.

"Towers he doesn't want to mess with Blanks confidence right now by asking him to start taking fly balls in Arizona. If the Padres do opt to see how Blanks looks in the outfield then it would likely be once the Triple-A season begins in Portland."

However, Towers has said, to both Corey Brock and Tom Krasovic that Banks will start taking fly balls before games in AAA Portland. For those of you scoring at home, this would be 2 corner infielders the Padres have attempted to convert into outfielders, assuming taking fly balls before Beaver games is the first step in that conversion.

So there's that. Needless to say, Banks and his bat need to find their way into the lineup at some point this season.

Krasovic also reports in that same piece that Chris Young has been scratched from today's start in Peoria due to "elbow tendinitis." Young says its not a big deal, it happens every March when he begins introducing sliders and curve balls to his pitching repertoire.

Finally, one of the great sporting events in America begins tomorrow (technically it began on Tuesday). March Madness is upon us and nothing beats the opening weekend, with games on CBS from the time you wake up until bed. Fantastic. For those curious, here are some of my bracket picks:
- Final Four Teams: Louisville, Memphis, Pitt, Syracuse with Memphis winning the whole thing

- Arizona as a 12 seed heading to the Sweet Sixteen with wins over Utah and Wake Forest

- Purdue toppling UConn in the Sweet Sixteen

- VCU making a serious run to the Sweet Sixteen

- West Virgina taking down Michigan St. to advance to the Regional Finals

- Gonzaga takes out UNC

Enjoy the madness! Enjoy the WBC! Enjoy the green beer hangover!

Thoughts While Waiting for Selection Sunday

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:52:00 +0000

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!

Left Coast Bias Re-Boot

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 23:04:00 +0000

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.

Explaining the Trade Waivers...sort of

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 18:40:00 +0000

The Padres, dead last in the NL and owners of the worst record in baseball, made a grand total of 1 trade before the deadline on July 31. Whether that is an indication of the front office happy with the status quo (let's hope not) or an inability to find a deal that was adequate or simply that the Padres players that were considered available had zero trade value (looking at you Khalil Greene). I think it's important to point out that the Padres are a year removed from Game 163. Not much has changed and arguably at positions like second base they are in fact better. So, is this year a statistical anomaly or more indicative of the talent on this team? Who knows?

The biggest news of the week was Brian Giles almost trade to the Red Sox. Giles as a limited no-trade clause that includes the Boston Red Sox. This week, after being put on trade waivers (a process I'm told is very common for all MLB teams. According to Paul Depodesta's blog, at some point nearly every player will be placed on waivers). After being placed on waivers, teams had 48 hours to claim Giles, which was done by the Boston Red Sox. Unlike straight waivers however, this merely meant that the Red Sox were the only team the Padres could negotiate with. What would have come back to the Padres for Giles remains a mystery and perhaps the talks never got that far. Giles invoked his no-trade clause, choose to play for a dead last team other then a World Series contender and remains a Padre. This is good news. Giles is one of the more consistent players the Padres have, hitting near .300 and playing a better then average right field. I for one am happy to have Giles still with San Diego.

A very cool event to let you guys know about. Adrian and his wife Betsy have started the Adrian and Betsy Gonzalez Foundation and our having a charity dinner. Padre players will take over Acqua Al 2 as waiters, bartenders, host and even chefs. For more information, check the website.

A scary piece in the U-T regarding the Padres projected payroll in 2009. The rumor is John Moores (in the middle of what is turning into a contentious divorce) apparently predicted a $40 million payroll for '09 as a way to get Giles to accept his trade to the Red Sox. It's clear at this point, true or not, that there is fear in the clubhouse over the direction of this team. Coupled with the uncertainty of who will own the Padres after this divorce and we could all be in for a long 2009. Then again, it could be all talk. A cut to $40 million would cut their current payroll nearly in half. Then again it works for the Marlins...

Giles Claimed by Red Sox

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:58:00 +0000

The process of trading past the "trade deadline" is a confounding one that I don't fully understand. What I do know is that Brian Giles was claimed last night by the Red Sox. This gives the Red Sox the exclusive power to make a trade with San Diego. However, Boston is among the teams that Giles has a no-trade clause against. Further, the Red Sox OF is pretty full as is with Bay, Elsbury, Drew and Crisp. With the Angels and Rays both also putting claims on Giles, this appears to be nothing more then keep-way by Theo Epstein. Don't throw out those Giles jersey's yet, better then good chance he is sticking around for 2009.

Oh yeah, we still suck but the pain of sucking is subsiding. Hey, Gerut's been a nice surprise!

Who Needs a Break?

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 15:28:00 +0000

That got dangerously close to disaster territory for MLB. When the All-Star Game in Milwaukee ended in a 7-7 tie after 12 innings, the outcry across MLB was palpable. I for one didn't see the big hoopla considering the game is an exhibition game anyway but fans demanded there be a winner. That lead to the reactionary move of putting home field advantage at stake in the All Star Game, an idea that defies any sort of logic. As MLB is often criticized for, they continually trip over themselves when it comes to the All-Star Game. I for one have always been a fan of the idea of going to a "Home Run-Off" similar to a shootout in hockey to decide tie All-Star Games. That apparently is to gimmicky, but placing home field advantage in the most important game of the year, not gimmicky at all.

But the plan worked. No more ties, well-played games and on we went. Until last night when Terry Francona looked down at his bullpen around the 13th inning and realized that the only pitcher he had left was Scott Kazmir. Who threw 104 pitches on Sunday. And plays for a division rival. Clint Hurdle joked afterward (or maybe half joked) that David Wright was his emergency pitcher. One thing was for sure, this game had to come to a conclusion. This point was relayed to both dugouts during the later stages of the game last night. So what's more gimmicky? David Wright pitching to win home field advantage in the All-Star Game or a Home Run-Off?

Needless to say, as a fan, the game was thrilling. Some highlights:

- NL throws 2 guys out at home in the 10th with the bases loaded and no one out. This lead to the acrobatic play of Miguel Tejada, charging a slow grounder and throwing a bullet to first while falling down.

- Nate McCloth made a TREMENDOUS throw from Center Field to throw out the potential winning run. Russell Martin's scoop of the in between hop and blocking of the plate was equally impressive.

- Adrian Gonzalez played like 7 innings!!!! Nice game for AGon as he went 1-3 with an RBI (an RBI that, at the time, appeared to be the game winner). Lost in all this is the solid first base he played. In the 10th inning with the bases loaded, Russell Martin attempted to double up the hitter and appeared to slip as he threw. The throw was in the dirt and scooped nicely by AGon. Without that play the AL wins right there.

- If you stayed up to see it, George Sherrill formally introduced himself last night. 2 and a 1/3 innings pitched. Impressive display.

- All Michael Young does is win All-Star Games.

All in all, disaster was averted and the All-Star Game was what it is suppose to be. A showcase of the greatest sport in the world, played by the greatest players in the world.

Regular season starts up tomorrow and, sadly and amazingly, the Padres at 22 games under .500 are only 10 games out. Hopefully they give up that dream and let their young players play.

Reliving the Derby

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 16:39:00 +0000

There is an old adage about baseball that fans like to throw around. "Every day you come to the park you might see something new." Baseball is that kind of sport, the kind of sport where on any given day you could see something never before seen. Perhaps its an Indian rookie hitting the very first pitch he sees deep into the left field stands for a Grand Slam. Or a pitcher save his 500th game.

Last night at the Home Run Derby, baseball fans were given such a moment. While Josh Hamilton may not have won the Home Run Derby, such details seem secondary to the show he put on. But more then the display of raw, Roy Hobbs like power, is the story behind the show. By now, Hamilton's story of overcoming his addiction, working his way back and being reinstated into baseball, is well known throughout America. Hamilton made his Major League Debut last year, 8 years after being Tampa Bay's number 1 pick. But it was last night that he formally introduced himself to America.

Peter Gammons writes a great blog entry about baseball heroes showing up at the right time. While the game continues to be entangled in the scandals of Balco (scandals that have claimed arguably this generations best hitter and best pitcher), one need only look to last night to see how bright the future of baseball is. Hamilton, Utley, Uggla, Morneau, Longoria. These are hardly household names...yet.

I like baseball for many reasons. I like that you can't hold the ball and run out the clock to win, everyone gets a fair shake at winning, that many different strategy's produce can produce a win and that there is room for many different kinds of athletes. I like the nuances of the game, the fundamentals as well as the follies. And I like stories like Josh Hamilton, or Rick Ankiel, or Jim Abbot, or Jon Lester.

Padres at the Break (Brink)

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:55:00 +0000

So, I've been a bit of a slacker in updating post here. What can I say? Work...and play, has gotten in the way. But we are back for an All-Star post to ease us into the break. A couple thoughts from over the weekend:

- The Padres lost last night 12-3. The nice thing about 58 losses by the All Star Break is that all the losses blend together, making it hard to remember any one. I barely remember yesterday's loss already.

- The UT did an interesting "By the Numbers" piece today here. What jumps out at me is the 0-48 record in games when trailing after 8. So at no point this year has San Diego come back on another team's closer.

- The Padres are 11-16 in 1-run games which, more then anything, means that they have played 27 1 run games. They have played 26 "blowout" games (games decided by 5 or more runs).

- The 1998 National League Championship Team was honored over the weekend. I was 3 when the Padres won the '84 pennant so the '98 team was really my first experience with the Padres in the World Series. I lived in Tucson at the time but I remember how excited I was to see my team on national t.v. with all the playoff fanfare. Finally, when I had had enough, I drove out to San Diego for a game during the NLCS and it remains one of the most exciting sporting events I have been to. The 1998 season was some of the most fun I have ever had as a baseball fan and I'm glad they were honored this weekend. So thanks to Greg Vaughn, Ken Caminiti, Sterling Hitchcock, Kevin Brown, Carlos Hernandez, Tony Gwynn, Steve Finley and the rest of the squad. You gave me memories I wouldn't trade for anything.

- Only 1 Padre in the All-Star Game, Adrian Gonzalez (who should be in the Home Run Derby). As is typical, the major markets lead the way in voting and players sent to the game. Not that San Diego warranted more than 1 this year though.

- Finally, Jayson Stark wrote a scathing article about ARod not taking part in the Home Run Derby in Yankee Stadium. A good read (as most of Stark's stuff is).

Aimless Tuesday Ramblings

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 15:28:00 +0000

I was out of town this past weekend so that would be the reason for the limited updates. Hope every one's 4th was fun. Here are some random thoughts on the Padres I had:

- Adrian Gonzalez was named to the All-Star team to the surprise of no one. He will be travelling alone however (also to the surprise of no one) as he is the lone Padres representative. Adrian is also a bit open about his desire to take part in the Home Run Derby. With 22 homeruns (4th highest in the NL) and an open NL spot, it would seem to make perfect sense. It would seem...

- Edgar will not be making the trip to New York because the All-Star Break is "wife time."

- To meet Adrian's 8-4 goal before the All-Star break, the Padres have to win 5 straight after last night's 3-1 loss. That loss moved the Padres to 3-4 in their last 7.

- Greg Maddux will NEVER WIN AGAIN!!!!

- Greg Maddux can still pitch though and last night was a great example.

- Interesting move by the Brewers this weekend landing C.C. Sabathia. A new high water mark for mid-market/small market teams.

- I've been a fan since he got here but I am over Khalil Greene. Look, we had some fun, some laughs, but its over. Time to move on.

- In things I know little to nothing about, the Padres scored big in the Amateur signing day last week, landing 5 of ESPN.com's 10 best prospects. Check Paul Depodesta's blog for far better information on that at It Might Be Dangerous.

- And speaking of Depodesta, he put a call out to fans for suggestions on what to do with this team. Essentially, play GM. My answer, sell. Forget this season, get rid of Wolf, Giles, Greene, load up on prospects and look toward next year. It doesn't take a Herculean effort to win this division, but speed might help.

- $1 days at Petco! $1 hot dogs, $1 drinks, $1 off beer. Only 8 home games left in July.

- Luke Carlin has a cannon for a right arm. If only he could hit.

- Chase Headley may strike out a lot but he already has 5 home runs since joining the Padres a few weeks ago.

- The Padres can't score more than 3 runs at home! Last night was no different.

- I'm now openly rooting for a team below .500 to win the NL West

And Rocky Mountain Lows

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 18:28:00 +0000

I'm no math major but here's something I find interesting (and by interesting I mean depressing).

Game 1 Runs = 15
Game 2 Runs = 0
Game 3 Runs = 1

What a fun trip to Coors Field!!!!!

Now, according to Adrian's prediction the Padres have to go 7-1 to be "in" it. Although at this point it might be more embarrassing to be in this "pennant race" then to be out of it.

FYI, in the AL West we would be 18 GB, the NL East 14, the NL Central 24 GB. Good times.

But hey, it's the Fourth of July, so eat, drink, celebrate and forget your Padres worries (wait, they play today! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Luckily we have Baek going so there's no worries about bringing in unrealistically high expectations into this game).

How about some pictures from the NY trip? OK then:

Rocky Mountain Highs

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:14:00 +0000

The Padres salvaged what has been a miserable June by exacting, if only for a day, some revenge on the Colorado Rockies.

Last night, the Padres recorded season highs in hits (22) and runs (15). The runs total last night was more than the Padres have had in the past week. And while 1 game does not erase an 8 game losing streak or a 3-15 interleague schedule, it underscores the odd situation the Padres and the rest of the NL West find themselves in. It will only take one team, getting hot for 10 days, to take over the NL West. As Adrian Gonzalez put it last night:

"I've got a good feeling," Adrian Gonzalez said. "Giles and I were talking about this tonight. Counting tonight, we have 12 games going into the All-Star break.
"We're here and at Arizona on this trip, then return home to play the Marlins and Braves.
"If we go 8-4 to the break and get to within six out on Arizona ... we're not too far out. It doesn't sound great, but it's been done before. I think everything rides on these next 12 games.
"Six-and-six, we're done. Seven-and-five, though. But 8-4. It's something to shoot for. We've created the start."

8-4 in this stretch. Possible, certainly considering the struggles that Colorado and Arizona have been going through. But one thing is certain. This week is THE week to get back in the race. If the Padres are double digit games back by the All-Star Break, let the selling begin. For now, a 7-run 9th inning seems to have given the Padres a small reprieve.

As you know, LCB is a fan of Edgar Gonzalez. Last night, big brother had a big night, hitting two homeruns and ending the night with 4 hits. It does raise the question: what do the Padres do when Iguchi gets back? More on that later. For now, let's enjoy a rare offensive outburst by the Padres.

Our God Has Forsaken Us!

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 15:27:00 +0000

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.

The Etiquette of Booing

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 22:14:00 +0000

This post is really a response to a question posed at Gaslampball.com. When is it ok to boo Trevor Hoffman? Let me set up the scenario for you.

Last night, bottom of the 8th in a 1-1 game, the Padres put runners on 1st and 2nd with no one out. The Padres, after failing to bunt the runners over (thus requiring only a fly ball to score), hit themselves out of the inning and failed to score. This left the game in a 1-1 tie heading to the 9th.
NOTE: As someone asked on the post-game show last night, why didn't Heath Bell stay in the game for the 9th? The pitchers spot in the batting order came around with runners on. Simple as that.

Now, Trevor's struggles in tie games, at least as compared to save situations. But there he was, and for 2 batters it looked like a stroke of genius as Trevor struck out the first two batters he saw.

Then, back-to-back homeruns. 3-1, game over.

What followed that inning was perhaps more shocking and more worthy of debate. The San Diego fans booed Trevor Hoffman as he left the mound. Which leads to our question, is it ok to boo Trevor Hoffman?

Many will say yes and they have a point I suppose. He is a highly paid athlete, he is under-performing (although his save total is still high enough to be among the National League's best), and an overall frustration in the 2008 season was being taken out on Trevor in that moment. Dare I say, those who support booing Trevor Hoffman are dead wrong.

Bill Simmons of ESPN.com said of die hard fans that when you are a die hard, the team is like your family. When a member of the family screws up, the family circles the wagons. So should we around Trevor Hoffman. What is most frustrating is that those who would boo were the same fans who cheered at Trevor's record-breaking save or save #500 or even the first two strikeouts last night.

But more than any of this, Trevor has earned our respect. We know he's not as effective, he knows, everyone knows it. That does not warrant booing. Can anyone ever imagine a scenario in which Tony Gwynn would be booed for striking out with the bases loaded or for making a game-ending error? Of course not and nor should Trevor be booed. He is arguably the second most prominent Padre in history, will be a Hall of Famer and will one day have his own statute at the Park-at-the-Park. I'm not asking for blind idol worship. Just don't boo the man. In the end, if you are a fan, you have a vested interest in Trevor and the team doing better. That goal can't be reached by booing.

Trevor has never beat his wife, used performance-enhancers, said disparaging remarks about the city of San Diego or his teammates, has never acted as if he is better than everyone. What he has done is stay loyal to this team despite more lucrative offers, established himself as a champion for charity causes in San Diego, and set an all-time record as a Padre. This is not the kind of players that deserve to be booed nor is San Diego the type of place that should be associated with booing their legends. Save that for New York and Boston.

Of course, all of this could have been avoided if the Padres had professional hitters who knew how to bunt.

An AL Bloodbath

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 22:34:00 +0000

- Since leaving for Cleveland the Padres are 2-7 including a sweep by the Yankees and losing 2 of 3 to the Indians and Tigers. Needless to say, interleague cannot end fast enough. Luckily, misery loves company, as the National League, once again, has a losing record against the American League (save the Cubs sweeping the White Sox and the Reds taking 2 of 3 from NY). Minnesota comes in next and one can only hope the Padres can find a way to win a series.

- The Padres are 13 % more likely to strike out with runners in scoring position then any team in the NL. That stat attributes much of the offensive woes the Padres face. It's not getting guys on that seems to be the problem, it's the bats clamming up once they do. Last Thursday in NY, this was made abundantly apparent where, in the 2nd inning the Padres put guys at 2nd and 3rd with no one out. Strike out, throw out at home, strike out ended the inning. Bases loaded with 1 out in the 3rd, similar result. As the guy sitting next to me at Yankee Stadium said "the Padres should be up 7-0 right now." To which all I could say was "Yup, but you get use to it. I've seen this movie before."

- I understand the lineup choices are a bit limited with the nagging injuries to Hairston and Kouzmanoff, but PMac in the 5 hole? Really? That's the best we can muster!

- Adrian Gonzalez hit his 21st homerun yesterday, opposite field shot (as it turns out, 1/3rd of his homeruns this year have been opposite field shots!). Then he was intentionally walked his next two times up. The book is out, and until Headley asserts himself as a legit threat (which he will) and/or Kouz comes back, Adrian might as well leave the bat in the dugout. Interestingly, Adrian has driven in 22.5% of the Padres runs this year, by far the highest on any team.

- Chase Headley had a tremondous start in NY at the plate (a less impressive defensive start so far, although if the Padres could figure out where to play him and, you know, let him play there, this wouldn't be such an issue.). But at the plate, Headley went 2-4, 1-4 with a HR, 1-4 with a double in the three game series in NY. He followed that up with a 2-4 plus a homerun day at home against Detroit, a 1-4 game on Saturday before his 5-game hitting streak came to an end on Sunday, going 0-4 with 3K's (note: his 4th out was a warning track shot). I would say Headley is as-advertised as to his offense.

- An interesting article today in the San Diego U-T here. Basically, the Moores are getting divorced and California is a community-property state which basically means the divorce is suppose to go 50/50 in regards to property. So who takes over the Padres?

- I talked this up a bit last week but be sure to head to Ducksnorts.com/blog and find Parts 1-3 of the interview Geoff Young did with Sandy Alderson. Interesting stuff.

I'm saving the full Yankee Stadium report until I get the pictures from the trip. However, I will say this (and likely repeat during that post). Here are the stadiums I've been too now (active stadiums):

1) Petco Park

2) Dodger Stadium

3) Chase Field (AZ)

4) U.S. Cellular Field (Chicago WS)

5) Wrigley Field

6) Angels Stadium

7) Yankee Stadium

8) Miller Park (Milwaukee)

As you would guess, Petco is first but one cannot compare a brand new stadium to one built in the 1920's.

Greetings from the Big Apple

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 02:53:00 +0000

You know what would be awes0me...having a team that knew how to run the bases! I would take a team that would recognize that they are a slow team!!!!! Adrian, I love you, but you are slow sir.

Anyway, stopping by to say hey to everyone. Was at Yankee Stadium today, the mecca of baseball stadiums and it lived up to expectation. The Bronx is a Zoo (words are fun!). Hung out at a Yankee bar, meet some interesting people. All went well, except of course for the game itself. Josh Banks deserved a better fate after essentially shutting down the Yankees today. And of course that base running.

The positives? Chase Headley is swinging it and some tremondous defense today which is something we couldn't say the first two games.

In the end though, get us the hell out of the AL! Tough road trip.

Full NY report with pictures next week!

Head East Young Man

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:38:00 +0000

Tomorrow morning I leave for the bright lights of New York City! As a brief primer, here is what I have on-deck in the Big Apple:

1) Josh Banks vs. Joba Chamberlein on Thursday Afternoon...and it's cap day. I have never been to Yankee Stadium and as this will likely be the only time I can go before they tear it down, you can bet I'll be taking the whole thing in. A lot of pictures will follow but for sure things I will see are going to be Monument Park, the Yankee Stadium sign outside, and the bar scene around the park.

2) Grab your fanny packs kids, I'm heading on a Double Decker tour bus. Look, I'm not there that long, its a big city, so I want to see as much as I can while I'm there. City Tour of Manhatten, just like the Muppets!

3) Checking out CBGB. For those non-music fans out there, CBGB was THE premiere punk club in NYC. While music is no longer played there, the building and interior is still there and still gross!

4) Metropolitan Museum of Art or The MET, you know, for culture and stuff.

5) Trying not to trip over the homeless guy who looks exactly like Willie Randolph...wait, that is Willie Randolph! Tough town...

6) Finding terminally ill people to bring to Chase Headley so the savior can heal them. Anything less would be a disappointment at this point.

So there you have it, if anyone has anymore suggestions on what to do/see in NYC, let me know. Otherwise, GO PADRES!!!!!

Oh, and finally. Whenever I'm asked why I hate the Yankees (and Red Sox for that matter) it usually has little to do with the players. I like Derek Jeter and ARod. What I hate are the finances of Yankee baseball and the ownership. The latest exhibit, this classic line from Hank Steinbrenner in reference to his ace getting hurt running the bases:

"My only message is simple. The National League needs to join the 21st century," Steinbrenner said in Tampa, Fla. "They need to grow up and join the 21st century."
"Am I [mad] about it? Yes," Steinbrenner added. "I've got my pitchers running the bases, and one of them gets hurt. He's going to be out. I don't like that, and it's about time they address it. That was a rule from the 1800s."

Classic! Baseball is played with 9 guys Hank. 9 in the field, 9 at the plate, and it's suppose to be the same 9 guys! Now, baseball fans debate the DH over and over again, but Hank takes it to a new level. Hey Steinbrenner, sorry your pitchers are so out of shape that they can't run around the bases without getting hurt. Didn't realize they made them so fragile in New York!

The Padres Take Manhatten!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 15:47:00 +0000

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.

Frustrating Way to Begin a Series

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 20:17:00 +0000

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.

Meet the Mets, Greet the Mets, Come on Everybody and SWEEP THE METS!!!

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:23:00 +0000

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.

Record Day at Petco

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 17:56:00 +0000

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.

All Is Not Lost...Yet

noreply@blogger.com (GTH) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 17:26:00 +0000

An odd revelation came to me yesterday. The Padres are beginning to resemble the teams that won the NL West in '06 and '07 and the team that came within 1 inning of the Wild Card last year. Those teams similar offensive woes but won games behind solid starting pitching, bullpen work and defense. How many times in the past three years have we seen the Padres win 2-1 games? Up until now, those wins have eluded this team.

Now while the Cubs series didn't go the way the Padres wanted, what sticks out to me is that the games were close (in fact, in the two losses the Padres had leads each time). It was late inning offensive outbursts that killed the Padres (that will happen facing a lineup like the Cubs). Last night against the Mets, it appeared the the old recipe for success in Petco was dusted off. MLB certainly won't be using last nights game tape to sell baseball overseas, but solid pitching by surprising waiver wire pick-up Josh Banks (who know holds a Padres record for longest scoreless inning streak by a Padre pitcher to begin their career), and a hit by pitch were enough to win last night. Pretty? Not likely. Effective? Absolutely.

There are still major holes, major negatives with this team. 2-22 with RISP over two games is not helpful. Iguchi is now out for 4 weeks and left field is a giant hole right now. BUT, the Padres are 8 GB of first, the division is playing poorly, providing the Padres with the best record in the division in May (13-16...ugh). All is not lost. Things will also only get better as Jake Peavy is due back soon, Chris Young will be back providing a rotation that looks like this:
1. Peavy
2. Young
3. Maddux
4. Wolf
5. Banks

And of course, we are mere days away (one can only assume) of Chase Headley's call up. The downside to waiting this long is the enormous pressure Headley will be under when he gets here. The Padres have shown patience before with rookies if they struggle early (see: Kouzmanoff) but the pressure from the fans on Headley will be unlike any rookie has faced in San Diego in a long time. So, let this serve as a PSA of sorts: If Headley starts 2-25 or something similar, give the guy a break and let him ease in.

In other news, the Padres picked 1B Allan Dykstra from Wake Forest in the first round yesterday. I like college baseball but no little to nothing about MLB drafts and strategy's around it. But, www.ducksnorts.com/blog does, so check them out later this weekend for a full recap.

Can the Padres win the NL West? I know believe that answer is yes. But first things first, Johan Santana tonight against Randy Wolf.