PADS WIN! PADS WIN! PADS WIN!

Sorry, but it really is that exciting. Two hits from Sean Burroughs in the #3 hole. Four times on base for "cleanup hitter" Dave Hansen. An opposite field homer from Rondell White. And the big story, a two-hitter from Brian Lawrence to beat Curt Schilling and the Diamondbacks, 5-1.

Okay, Lawrence threw a few more pitches than I’d have liked to seen from him. I was listening to the game on the way back from Elsinore (more on that in a bit) and screaming for the Padres not to let him start the ninth after throwing 113 pitches. But thankfully he was very efficient in the final frame. And thankfully it wasn’t Jake Peavy out there.

Anybody notice how the pitching is back now that Bennett is healthy and catching again? I never, ever thought I’d say these words, but thank goodness Bennett is back. And Lawrence for that matter. Hadn’t seen him pitch a game that well in a long time.

Meanwhile, Back at the Lake

Observations from the Storm game last night against Rancho Cucamonga:

• Uberprospect Casey Kotchman was not in the lineup for the Quakes.
• Rancho catcher Jeff Mathis, ranked #5 among Angels prospects by BA, can rake. He singled, doubled, and flied to deep left-center in four trips to the plate. Narrow stance, good balance, short stride. First impression: reminded me a little of Mike Lieberthal or Paul Konerko. Didn’t do much behind the dish to distinguish himself one way or the other. He also appears to run pretty well and have good instincts on the bases.
• Rancho southpaw Jake Woods (#15 prospect) spun a six-hit shutout. I didn’t track pitches, but the way the Storm hitters were attacking early in the count, I’d be surprised if he broke 100.
• For Elsinore, Josh Barfield singled in four at-bats and was robbed of another hit on a terrific diving catch by Rancho’s right fielder. In the field, Barfield makes things interesting. He made a spectacular diving stop and throw from his back on a ball that wasn’t quite routine but that probably didn’t warrant a dive. He also ran into first baseman Jon Benick on a foul popup, causing the latter to drop the ball for an error.
• Storm left-hander Jason Wiedmeyer worked in the mid-80s, topping out at 88 MPH. He didn’t pitch particularly well, but he also didn’t get much help from his defense. It was Wiedmeyer’s first loss in five starts this season.
• Left fielder Marcus Nettles had a rough night. The box score shows that he had a hit in three at-bats. What it doesn’t show is that he took bad routes in left, had two guys tag up and go to third in the same inning on medium-deep fly balls, and made some horrible baserunning decisions the one time he did reach base.
• Mike Wodnicki worked the ninth and was consistently in the 92-95 MPH range with his fastball. A little more gas than I’d remembered from him.

Tom Waits, The Heart of Saturday Night

The compositions on this 1974 release feature engaging melodies that still sound fresh today. The arrangements are tight and harmonically rich, with liberal use of strings and horns. The pace of the album is also solid, with natural movement between slow waltzes and swinging blues, between full arrangements and just him and a piano. The lyrics are imagistic and sometimes surprising.

For years I’ve resisted the notion that lyrics added anything to a song beyond the means by which to carry a melody (hence my liking of, e.g., Cocteau Twins, whose haunting tunes are unobstructed by intelligible words). But thanks to songwriters such as Waits, I’m slowly coming to appreciate well-crafted lyrics.

I won’t bore either of us with "analysis" of Waits’ words (which would only devolve into a rant on the unknowability of authorial intent anyway), but I will present a few lines for your consideration. Assign whatever meaning to them you see fit, but pay attention to his use of language. This works best if you read the lyrics out loud:

You know the bartenders
They all know my name
And they catch me when I’m pulling up lame
And I’m a pool-shooting-shimmy-shyster shaking my head
When I should be living clean instead

  –Fumblin’ With the Blues

I admit that I ain’t no angel
I admit that I ain’t no saint
I’m selfish and I’m cruel and I’m blind
If I exorcise my devils
Well my angels may leave too
When they leave they’re so hard to find

  –Please Call Me, Baby

A cab combs the snake,
Tryin’ to rake in that last night’s fare,
And a solitary sailor
Who spends the facts of his life
like small change on strangers…

Paws his inside P-coat pocket
for a welcome twenty-five cents,
And the last bent butt from a package of Kents,
As he dreams of a waitress with Maxwell House eyes
And marmalade thighs with scrambled yellow hair.

  –The Ghosts of Saturday Night

Maybe it’s because he lived in San Diego for a time and I know some of the places he mentions in his songs, but I enjoy this album tremendously and have yet to grow tired of it even after dozens of listenings. If you like the blues, if you like beat poetry, if you like cool bass lines, I highly recommend this one.

More info on Tom Waits: officialtomwaits.com