first pitch: 7:05 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4
matchup: Tim Stauffer (1-2, 4.55 ERA) vs Mark Buehrle (7-1, 3.15 ERA)
previews: ESPN | CBS | Padres.com
Same old story Friday night: Padres had chances but couldn’t take advantage of them. When you’re playing a good team like the White Sox, that’s not a recipe for success. On the bright side, we did come home with some sweet Aki T-shirts. They look great, but don’t change the fact that the Dodgers and Diamondbacks both have crept back to within 2 1/2 games of first place in the NL West.
Again, with the interleague contest, it’s tough to break down the matchups so I won’t. Instead, with the draft still on my mind, and with former Padre first-rounder Dustin Hermanson getting the save Friday against his old uniform, I thought I’d take a quick look back at the 1995 draft.
In the latest issue of Baseball America, they re-examine some drafts from the past and try to figure out how things would have played out if we knew then what we know now. You may recall that in 1995, the Friars tabbed Pennsylvania high school catcher Ben Davis with their first pick (second overall). Unfortunately, aside from a few brief stretches here and there, Davis hasn’t had much big-league success and has managed to work his way back down the minor leagues.
Baseball America suggests that if they had it do over again, the Padres would take Kerry Wood (who went #4 to the Cubs) with that pick but I’m not so sure. BA has the Angels taking Todd Helton first overall. This would have left San Diego to choose from – in addition to Wood – the likes of Roy Halladay, Matt Morris, and Sean Casey. But there was another player out there I’m pretty sure I would have taken (with the benefit of knowledge nobody had at the time, of course), the guy Kansas City ended up grabbing in the second round, Carlos Beltran.
No disrespect to Wood, who when healthy has been a pretty good (and occassionally brilliant) pitcher, but I’m not convinced he would even be the second pitcher taken in that draft, let alone the second player. Still, he would have been a fair shake better than Davis. And of course, Beltran has been better than both. Ah, the wisdom of hindsight.
Speaking of the draft, the U-T is reporting that the Padres have agreed to terms with LHP Cesar Ramos. The 35th pick overall, taken as compensation for the Red Sox signing David Wells (thank you!) will receive a bonus of $950k. Word is, Ramos may end up at Elsinore later this summer.
Speaking of Cesars, Peter has posted an interview with this year’s first-round pick, RHP Cesar Carrillo. Check it out.
And in other Padre blog news, regular Ducksnorts reader and commenter Lance (DONG!!! DONG!!! DONG!!! DONG!!! DONG!!!) has joined up with Richard over at Friar Faithful. Go over and say hey when you have a chance.
Finally, to those of you who may have discovered Ducksnorts via Channel 4′s Outta Left Field, welcome aboard! Good to see you joining us during the games (as well as before and after!). Despite the recent struggles, this remains a very good Padre team. And if you look around MLB at what some other ballclubs are putting out on the field, I think you’ll agree that we can be pretty proud of the guys who call Petco home. They’re not perfect, but they’re pretty darned good, and they will turn things around again. And when they do, we can welcome even more folks who suddenly become interested in talking about the Padres. 
I have no problem with people jumping on the bandwagon, dig? I just want to make sure that once they’re on, they stick around awhile. A win tonight against the White Sox couldn’t hurt. Let’s do it.
C’mon Richard, stop holding back.
I’ll give you a hint, it’s not DJ.
Bochy has really done it, now. He wasted his bench. Nady, Fick, Sweeney or Fick, Sweeney, Jackson? Hard choice only not.
Nice to see Stauffer off the hook.
Time for the squeeze.
I really hope DJ can do this…
PADRES WIN!!!!!
And there’s your ballgame. Pads win!
Show your complete lack of pelo, DJ!
That called strike for strike one on DJ was ridiculous, Aki didn’t get that call.
What a game! Maybe this will get them going again.
Headline: Despite Bochy’s Idiocy & Buerhle’s Brilliance, Friars Win
2 hours, 30 minutes. That’s great baseball.
Stauffer deserved the no decision. Fantastic that they came back.
This was like one of the games in May. The team just never gives up.
They usually never give up. Some of the games on this homestand have been pretty lethargic.
That game shouldn’t have been close, btw.
Frickin’ Baseball Tonight, no mention of Stauffer’s great game. Not one frickin mention. I really am beginning to hate ESPN.
Nevin left two runners in scoring position, Ojeda of course had his. Team left 10 on.
And now a message from the National Apple Institute:
FUCK PEARS!!
Seriously, what’s with that guy?
Nine days between starts sure didn’t bother Tim Stauffer.
In his sixth start, Stauffer allowed just three hits – an RBI double and a pair of infield singles.
After Scott Podsednik led off the game with a dribbler up the third-base line and Tadahito Iguchi brought him home with a double, Stauffer retired 21 of the next 22 hitters, including the final 13 he faced. Only Iguchi reached base again, on an infield single to short with two outs in the third inning.
Stauffer struck out a career-high seven, including Podsednik, Iguchi, and Aaron Rowland in the sixth inning.
Stauffer never walked a batter, the first time he’s done so in his career. He threw 65 of his 92 pitches for strikes. Stauffer threw first-pitch strikes to 15 of the first 21 hitters he faced. In the seventh, Stauffer retired the heart of the White Sox order, Paul Konerko, Jermaine Dye, and A.J. Pierzynski in order, despite getting behind on the first pitch to each hitter.
But despite this sparking performance, Stauffer failed to notch a win for the fifth straight start. During this stretch, he’s 0-2 with three no decisions.
The Padres, meanwhile, are 4-2 when Stauffer pitches, and the kid’s delivered a quality start (at least six innings with three or fewer earned runs allowed) in four of his six outings. On the other two occasions, Stauffer allowed four earned runs and lost both games, 5-0 at Seattle May 22 and 5-0 vs. the Chicago Cubs on June 2.
Overall, the Padres have scored just 19 runs in Stauffer’s six outings (3.17 runs per game). Seattle’s Aaron Sele and the Cubs’ Glendon Rusch both blanked San Diego.
Even more interesting, of the 19 runs the Padres have scored in Stauffer’s six starts, only eight of those runs have come with Stauffer on the hill. San Diego scored the other 11 runs after Stauffer was removed from the game.
San Diego’s offense helped Stauffer win his major league debut, 7-2, over Cincinnati on May 11. In that game, the Padres scored five runs in the six innings Stauffer was on the hill and two afterward.
Since scoring once in the sixth inning to tie Stauffer’s second appearance, 2-2, against Atlanta on MAy 16, San Diego has scored just one run in the last 24-2/3 innings that Stauffer has pitched and nine runs after he’s been removed from the game.
Here’s the numbers:
Total Stauffer In Stauffer Out
Cincy 5/11 7 5 2
Atlanta 5/16 5 2 3
Seattle 5/22 0 0 0
Frisco 5/28 5 1 4
Cubs 6/2 0 0 0
ChiSox 6/11 2 0 2
Overall, Stauffer is 1-2 with a 3.93 ERA. In 36-2/3 innings, he’s allowed 34 hits and 16 runs, all of them earned, with 24 strikeouts and 12 walks.
Stauffer has allowed 8.34 hits per nine innings pitched, with a 1.31 WHIP (including two hit batsmen in his debut against Cincinnati.)
He’s thrown an average of 96.7 pitches per outing, and 63.3 percent of those pitches have been for strikes.
And Baseball America did not list this kid as one of its Top 100 Minor League prospects. Further evidence of BA’s renowned bias against baseball players from the Northeast.