Two out of three at Wrigley ain’t bad. Once again, I didn’t see the game so I can’t really offer commentary beyond the obvious, i.e., we needed that one.

Instead, today we’ll talk about something I’ve been thinking about for a while: proper allocation of available resources. The other day one of my regulars wrote to me asking about Bruce Bochy’s fascination with Terrence Long. This was after Long grounded into a double play with the bases loaded against a lefty at a key point in Tuesday’s game. The question of why Long was allowed to bat in that situation with other options available is one that neither of us was able to answer.

Fortunately, Ramon Hernandez bailed the Padres out of that one by smacking a three-run homer. Yesterday, Long again grounded into a bases-loaded double play late in the game against a southpaw. Again there were options available that were not utilized. Again there was no obvious explanation.

This isn’t a dig against Long, who actually is performing better than most of us expected in more playing time than we’d wanted to see him get. But there are some curiosities in usage patterns that fall somewhere between weird and disturbing, depending on circumstances.

I was talking with another buddy a couple days ago about what the Padres need to do to get to the next level if they don’t make it to the playoffs this year. As far as actual on-the-field moves, I figured a legit #5 starter and a better bench would help, but that the main keys would be continued growth from the youngsters and continued health from the big boppers.

But looking a little deeper, I wondered about some of the decisions that have been made over the past few years in terms of both populating the 25-man roster and maximizing that roster’s efficiency. It’s easier to dismiss some of these things when the team is going nowhere, although so much time wasted on the likes of Deivi Cruz is still a source of frustration.

Now that the Padres are actually making some noise, the decisions to flirt with the Rule V draft, to hang onto and use a lefty reliever in crucial situations solely on the basis of his being left-handed (as opposed to a qualified big-league reliever), to bury one of your best hitters off the bench from the previous season in favor of a guy whose only semi-usable skill is his speed, and so forth loom larger than in the past. Long and Jeff Cirillo I understand. Those were bad contracts acquired to take other bad contracts off the Padres’ hands. Sometimes you get Rondell White, sometimes you end up with Long and Cirillo.

Never mind for now the fact that bad contracts were tendered in the first place; that’s another rant for another day. But given the hand that was dealt, I’m not sure the Padres have managed their resources in the best way possible. I have a few specific issues:

• Ramon Vazquez and Brian Buchanan. Both of these guys were key contributors last year. Vazquez had some trouble adapting to his new role coming off the bench and battled injuries, but he deserved more of an opportunity than he got. Same with Buchanan. How many times did we have to watch Kerry Robinson come up to pinch-hit in a crucial situation against a right-hander early in the season? How many times did a game end without the Pads’ best bench hitter even making an appearance? They’re paying for it now. Where was Buchanan yesterday when Long grounded into that double play against Mike Remlinger? Where would Buck have been if he’d had more regular playing time earlier in the season? Speculation, sure, but when Buchanan has been given the oppportunity in the past, he’s contributed. This year he has been reduced to a spectator. Why? Essentially so Robinson could play. That’s inexcusable.
• Jon Knott and Xavier Nady. Why bring these kids up from Triple-A if they’re not going to play? Make a decision. Either they’re ready to help or they’re not. Calling them up so they can ride pine makes no sense. Are they helping the Padres? No. Are they advancing their own careers? No. So what’s the point? Who benefits from this arrangement?
• Eddie Oropesa and Jason Szuminski. Oropesa hasn’t demonstrated the ability to do anything in the big leagues beyond throw a baseball with his left hand, Szuminski isn’t ready for the Show but has to stick on the roster or be given back to the Cubs. Like Kory DeHaan, Donaldo Mendez, and others, the real question is: Who cares? These are all potentially useful players whose best chance of realizing said potential is by not being left to rot on the bench of a big-league team while they should be honing their craft at Double- or Triple-A. Finding bargains is great, but this isn’t the way to do it. You want examples of bargains? Develop your own guys (Jake Peavy, Sean Burroughs, Khalil Greene), trade for someone else’s prospects (Adam Eaton), sign guys that are good but unknown or unheralded (Aki Otsuka, Mark Loretta). Steer clear of the Rule V draft. The exceptions make for great copy, but the risk is not worth it.
• Justin Germano, Brian Sweeney, and Dennis Tankersley. Same comment as for Knott and Nady applies here. Germano got a reasonable shot, the other two really didn’t. I know I’m not the only one who still doesn’t understand what Tankersley did to deserve a demotion. Don’t get me wrong, Ismael Valdez and his nine wins were a great story, but he should not have been standing in the way of these guys.
• Kerry Robinson. Not much more to say that hasn’t already been said. He’s very fast but he doesn’t put his speed to particularly good use on a baseball field. Doesn’t do anything else very well. Very frustrating to think how much time he got early in the season at the expense of better players.
• Darren Bragg. Solid big-league bench jockey who can hit and play all three outfield positions. Discarded before he had a chance to show what he could do. Unlike Robinson, he could have made a positive contribution to this club.

I’m sure there are others I’m forgetting, but it’s late and I’m tired. The larger point is that now that our neighbors to the north have cash flow and brains in the front office, the decision makers in the Padre organization need to sweat the details and make sure that they are taking advantage of every possible opportunity to improve the team. They have to keep mistakes to a minimum.

The Friars have done a nice job of assembling talent and capturing the hearts of local fans. The next step is to eliminate those handful of bizarre personnel decisions that seem to crop up every year. Do I have a plan in mind? Well, right now it consists in hoping that the powers-that-be learn from their mistakes and work to improve the process down the line. How well do I expect this plan to work? I have no idea. Ask me again around this time next year.