His command isn’t what it once was. His velocity isn’t what it once was. But that moustache is still as good as ever. Ladies and gentlemen, Rod Beck recorded his first save in two years and the Padres didn’t blow a lead yesterday. How about that?

A few thoughts from the series:

• Ryan Klesko’s bunt against Chicago’s Damaso Marte Friday night was a thing of beauty. The ChiSox had their shortstop playing directly behind second base, so there was a ton of room on the left side of the infield. At the time, Klesko was hitting .132/.246/.189 against southpaws, while Marte was holding left-handed hitters to .225/.311/.275. Klesko dropped a beauty right down the line, and if he’d hit it just a bit harder he might’ve had a double. Very heads-up baseball.
• Kevin Jarvis looked about like you’d expect a guy who hasn’t pitched in a year to look. But once he builds his stamina, he should help soak innings, which will help the bullpen, which in turn will lessen the temptation for Bruce Bochy to overwork the youngsters.
• Speaking of overworking the youngsters, probably the only thing more disturbing than the radio guys talking about giving Donaldo Mendez part of the shortstop job when Ramon Vazquez returns is Rick Sutcliffe’s obsession with minor leaguers pitchers not being allowed to complete games. Does Kevin Towers have tapes of his broadcasts? Sutcliffe knows a lot about pitching (I know, he said so), but is this really someone the Padres want around their young pitchers? If he’s willing to question the Pads’ organizational plan to protect young arms on television, one shudders to think what he might be saying in private to some of these kids. I hope I’m reading too much into this, but I cringe every time I hear Sutcliffe scoff at the club’s philosophy.
• Oliver Perez looked okay in his return. Not as good as the numbers would indicate, but better than he’s looked in a long time. The positives are that he maintained a pretty consistent arm slot (not once did he drop down from the side; there were no lefties in the lineup) and he appeared more willing to use pitches other than his fastball. In particular, he broke off a few real nice backdoor curves against right-handed hitters. Very nice. Oh, and he did win the game, 1-0. On the downside, he still worked behind in the count too often, he overthrew on occasion, and he wasn’t as efficient as he could be (109 pitches in 6 2/3 innings is better, but not great). Also, of the 19 outs he recorded, 6 were strikeouts and the other 13 were fly balls. At least three of those fly outs were absolutely tattooed (including one off the bat of Miguel Olivo in the fifth which Mark Kotsay somehow managed to track down in left-center and which would have tied the game). To make a long story somewhat shorter, Perez did a lot of things right and the outcome was good. But he still has work to do; in my estimation, he cannot continue to have positive results if he displays the approach he had on Sunday. But if he keeps improving from start to start (and his return was a real good first step), there is cause for hope. Expect inconsistency for the rest of this season, but look for slow progress.
• Teams probably shouldn’t be so eager to run on Xavier Nady, who after nailing Magglio Ordonez at the plate in the fourth by a laughable margin now has nine outfield assists this year. Nady doesn’t have the strongest arm in the world, but it’s better than you might expect from a guy who’s had elbow problems. And he charges the ball well and generally is accurate with his throws. His defense in right field, although not great, has been a pleasant surprise so far.
• Gary Matthews Jr. continues to impress. After falling behind in the count, 0-2, to lead off the game, he eventually worked a walk from Jon Garland (who looked very good). Later in the inning, he nearly drove Garland to distraction dancing off second before getting a huge jump and swiping third. Best part was hearing Sutcliffe get flustered after having spent much of the inning taking Garland to task for paying so much attention to Matthews, who certainly wasn’t going to run in that situation.

Also made it out to Elsinore Saturday night for Michael Johnson’s pro debut. He doubled in five at-bats, but he hit the ball hard every time up and, cliche though it may be, the ball did sound different coming off his bat. He also, despite committing what was ruled an error on a pretty sharply hit grounder, displayed good movement around the bag at first and generally looked more athletic than I’d anticipated. My general impression is that the Cal League probably won’t prove much of a challenge for Johnson.

Greg Sain worked behind the plate. Had a rough time, allowing six stolen bases (bounced a couple of throws) and getting absolutely flattened on a play at home. But he did drive in two runs. Josh Barfield (who after Sunday’s game is hitting .359/.398/.552 on the year) continued his assault on Cal League pitching with three hits and a walk.

Modesto outfielder Gary Thomas also caught my eye. He played a solid center field, made some nice throws, and was a pest at the plate and on the bases. He’s short and kind of stocky, but the guy can play. Reminded me a little of a right-handed version of former Padre farmhand Warren Newson.

For more on Johnson and his debut, check out the NC Times:

• Shaky pitching, fielding doom Storm (in which we also learn that fourth-round pick Peter Stonard [who made his debut Sunday at third base] has joined the club, as has Brad Baker)
• After a year of negotiations, Johnson arrives to make pro debut

Khalil Greene

I don’t mean to dwell on the guy, but Greene is making himself impossible to ignore. He had two singles, a double, and a homer in Saturday’s game at Albuquerque. Greene did pull an 0-for-4 Sunday against former Padre Scott Sanders but is hitting .357/.419/.679 over 28 at-bats so far. No walks (but 3 HBP) against 10 strikeouts is about the only thing not to like. Still, it’s hard not to wonder whether Kevin Towers’ pre-season suggestion that Greene could be up after All-Star break might happen. If Mark Loretta is traded, Greene could play shortstop and Vazquez move back to second. I’m not sure how much I like that idea, but it wouldn’t surprise me too see such a scenario unfold.

Also at Portland, Tagg Bozied is heating up: .259/.330/.429. Not great, but he’s made steady progress over the course of the season, which is always good. And he’s controlling the strike zone pretty well, with 21 walks and 36 strikeouts in 205 at-bats.