IGD: Padres @ Rockies (10 Jul 2005)
Sun, Jul 10, 2005
by Geoff Young
first pitch: 12:05 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4
matchup: Pedro Astacio (2-8, 6.05 ERA) vs Jeff Francis (8-5, 4.74 ERA)
preview: Padres.com
You’re down 1-0 in the bottom of the ninth at Coors Field. You’ve got runners on first and second with nobody out. Xavier Nady (.263/.328/.497) is available on the bench. So is Geoff Blum (.237/.309/.348). Nady has an 854 OPS against lefties this year, while Blum checks in at 658. Naturally you have Blum come up to lay down a sacrifice bunt. Because, you know, he hasn’t done that all year. But Colorado “closer” Brian Fuentes can’t find the plate and falls behind in the count, 3-1, at which point Blum hacks away and ends up striking out.
Okay, so Blum doesn’t get the job done. But my question is, why is he even up there in the first place? And why is he being asked to sacrifice? Honestly, if that’s the plan (not that it’s a good one, mind you), at least send someone up who has recent experience laying down a bunt. Woody Williams immediately comes to mind. Blum was put in a position to fail, and that’s exactly what he did. Not his fault. He wasn’t the right man for the job, and his freakin’ boss should’ve known it.
Nady pinch hits immediately after Blum and also strikes out. Who knows if having him up with nobody out would have made a difference, but I really like the idea of Nady facing a 3-1 pitch from a lefty late in the game. The complete lack of confidence in this kid is really starting to grate. Especially now that he’s second on the team in homers. Do you suppose Nady’s inability to come through Saturday night might influence Bochy’s thought process when he has to choose between sending a scrappy veteran utility infielder or a young guy who hits the snot out of the ball up to the plate in a key situation? Does this thought haunt you? Or is it just me?
Anyway, the final game before the All-Star break sees right-hander Pedro Astacio make his Padre debut. Apparently Astacio had pitched earlier this season with Texas, with little success. He doesn’t walk many guys, which is great in Denver. He also gives up a ton of homers, which is decidedly less great.
The Friars are headed into the break with at least a 4 1/2 game lead in the NL West so I should be happy about that. And I am. But I’ll be even happier if they stop giving away games down the stretch and start putting some distance between themselves and the other teams in this weak-ass division.
C’mon guys, let’s finish on an up note. Go Pads!
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July 10, 2005 at 8:49 am
It’s not just you, Geoff … when I heard the Padres lost 1-0 @ Coors, I assumed Nady wasn’t in the starting lineup, and Sean Burroughs was … Bing & Bing!
More later, but I had a Craig Lefferts sighting last night … he’s pitching coach for the A’s short-season A-ball Vancouver Canadians (who beat our Eugene Emeralds 2-1 last night in Eugene).
July 10, 2005 at 10:45 am
I have long maintained that Bochy was a poor in game manager. His forte is motivation and keeping his players happy. Sometimes I think that the veterans are a little too comfortable under Bochy. I just cant think of too many managers that would be sitting Nady given the fact of missing your main right handed power bat combined with Nady’s display of power.
I was disappointed to see the extension given to Bochy in mid-season. This team is certainly NOT performing up to expectations. I admit that we are in first place but it is very hollow with the type of baseball we have been playing.
Astacio really got bombed at Portland, I dont understand his being called up to start this game. I really dont.
July 10, 2005 at 11:56 am
Klesko has the day off.
Jackson, lf
Young, 2b
Giles, rf
Hernandez, c
Nady, 1b
Greene, ss
Johnson, cf
Blum, 3b
Astacio, p
July 10, 2005 at 12:06 pm
As always, the folks who read the comments are the first to know. We now have swag:
http://www.cafepress.com/ducksnorts
Just FYI…
July 10, 2005 at 12:07 pm
Good to see Nady in there finally.
July 10, 2005 at 12:08 pm
You had those made, Geoff?
July 10, 2005 at 12:13 pm
Yessir, I did.
Nice AB by Giles. The TV guys are saying that the wind is blowing in from left today, so the best bet is to try to drive the ball to right-center.
July 10, 2005 at 12:14 pm
Wow, great jump by DJ. That play at third wasn’t close. Too bad Giles couldn’t move up to help keep Ramon from hitting into another DP.
July 10, 2005 at 12:15 pm
Cool shirts. You are big-time now.
July 10, 2005 at 12:16 pm
Great take-out by Giles.
July 10, 2005 at 12:16 pm
Thanks, bud. Oh man, I wouldn’t want to be turning a DP with Giles coming into second. He totally cleaned out Miles, saving Ramon from killing another inning.
July 10, 2005 at 12:18 pm
Quality AB from Nady so far.
July 10, 2005 at 12:20 pm
Geoff, do you have Astacio’s Coors stats?
July 10, 2005 at 12:20 pm
Damn, struck out. Eight pitch at-bat. Three foul balls were well struck. Not that those count for anything but he’s getting some good swings.
So, who thinks Astacio can toss a shutout.
July 10, 2005 at 12:22 pm
It’s not good. Career 7.24 ERA over 404
http://tinyurl.com/a7buz
July 10, 2005 at 12:23 pm
The Rockies announcers are musing over Astacio–how he is the best pitcher in Rockies history.
July 10, 2005 at 12:26 pm
Nice get by DJ in left. Astacio is the career wins leader for the Rox, with 53. His stuff is pretty underwhelming so far. Reminds me of Ismael Valdez.
July 10, 2005 at 12:27 pm
If he is Valdez, then we just bought the pennant.
July 10, 2005 at 12:27 pm
Dammit, how come Wilson hasn’t been traded to Washington yet?
July 10, 2005 at 12:39 pm
Astacio hits a little blooper down the right field line to drive in Ben Johnson. Ugly swing but we’ll take it. Great job by Johnson getting to third on Blum’s grounder to short.
July 10, 2005 at 12:41 pm
Astacio: 1-for-1 on the year, RBI
July 10, 2005 at 12:41 pm
Yeah, that was heads-up by Johnson.
July 10, 2005 at 12:42 pm
DJ is showing some great hustle today. Beats the toss to second to load the bases for Giles.
July 10, 2005 at 12:43 pm
Francis is up to 54 pitches.
July 10, 2005 at 12:44 pm
Pitch 55 results in a walk to Giles. 3-0 Pads. Where was all this yesterday?
July 10, 2005 at 12:44 pm
Giles is the man: RBI walk.
July 10, 2005 at 12:45 pm
Coming into the game, Giles is on a pace for 126 walks. Looks like an All-Star to me.
July 10, 2005 at 12:46 pm
Helton loses the pop foul in the sun. Ramon still alive.
July 10, 2005 at 12:46 pm
Oh well, so much for that.
July 10, 2005 at 12:49 pm
Correction: Astacio had on at-bat for the Rangers, so he is now 1-for-2.
July 10, 2005 at 12:50 pm
Useless info dept: Astacio’s lone shutout as a member of the Rockies came just over 4 years ago, July 5, 2001, at the Q. That was also the last of his 53 wins for the Rox.
July 10, 2005 at 12:51 pm
Complete log of Astacio’s Colorado starts, courtesy of David Pinto’s Day by Day Database:
http://tinyurl.com/drccc
July 10, 2005 at 12:56 pm
That’s a great piece of info. You should be working for the TV people today.
July 10, 2005 at 1:02 pm
Ho hum, Nady hits another home run.
July 10, 2005 at 1:05 pm
He just bought himself a benching.
July 10, 2005 at 1:06 pm
LOL. Oh, Johnson just gave one a good ride. Warning track in dead center. Wrong part of the park, kid.
July 10, 2005 at 1:07 pm
That’s 11 homers for Nady. He’s slugging .500 again.
July 10, 2005 at 1:11 pm
Watching at home w/o my computer. Had to turn on the wife’s laptop to belatedly post:
DONG!!!DONG!!DONG!!!DONG!!!DONG!!!!
Sorry so late, X.
July 10, 2005 at 1:11 pm
Is Roberts hurt again?
July 10, 2005 at 1:21 pm
No, they’re just sitting some of the lefties against Francis, who apparently is tough to pick up.
July 10, 2005 at 1:22 pm
Rockies catch a break on a grounder that hits the runner going from first to second. That would have been a double play.
July 10, 2005 at 1:26 pm
Astacio escapes with just the one run. Burroughs pinch hitting for him. Pitch counts after three innings: Francis 74, Astacio 80. Yuck. Reyes will work the fourth.
July 10, 2005 at 1:31 pm
I have to give it to Astacio, he did good for not having pitched in a while. Hope Reyes can do as well..
July 10, 2005 at 1:35 pm
Giles is God.
July 10, 2005 at 1:35 pm
Yeah, Astacio battled. Man, Giles is a stud. Let’s see if X can hit another one out.
July 10, 2005 at 1:44 pm
Inside-the-park homer to Mohr? Ugh.
July 10, 2005 at 1:46 pm
Josh Barfield just hit one to the warning track in the futures game. Just missed it..
July 10, 2005 at 1:48 pm
Thanks to Reyes’ ineffectiveness and Bochy’s limitations as a manager, Nady is now out of the game. In the fourth inning. Thanks for the homer, son, now sit your ass down. Honestly…
July 10, 2005 at 1:48 pm
what the hell? he is taking nady out this early at coors? gawd I hate that doubleswitchingasshole
July 10, 2005 at 2:02 pm
Wilson badly misplays Blum’s flyball into a triple. Too bad Johnson got picked off first right before that.
July 10, 2005 at 2:06 pm
Three walks and a triple in the fifth, no runs. Now *that* is hard to do.
July 10, 2005 at 2:12 pm
that redding/mays for quantril trade keeps looking better and better.
July 10, 2005 at 2:16 pm
Dodgers blew a 5-1 lead to get swept at Houston and finish up at 40-48 headed into the ASB.
July 10, 2005 at 2:16 pm
Nice to see Quantrill getting the chance to swing the bat here instead of Nady.
July 10, 2005 at 2:19 pm
oh yeah, who wants to give a guy a chance to hit two homers in one game anyway?
July 10, 2005 at 2:29 pm
Attaboy, Greenie. Solo bomb to left. Wasn’t sure if that was going to stay fair.
July 10, 2005 at 2:32 pm
Farm Report: Blanks with #7 … Casey Smith with #2 … yesterday over in Peoria … http://www.minorleaguebaseball.....k_rngrok_1
July 10, 2005 at 2:39 pm
they gotta give blanks some stiffer competition, heck he is slugging about .600 and hitting .400. leading the league in homers..
July 10, 2005 at 2:40 pm
doubleswitchingasshole. That would be good name for a band or album.
July 10, 2005 at 2:46 pm
hahahahahha..sorry bout that, sometimes I get too worked up about a baseball game..
July 10, 2005 at 2:53 pm
Ladies and gentleman, the great Chris Hammond.
July 10, 2005 at 2:54 pm
hank … i understand what you’re saying about blanks … i’d enjoy getting to see him up here in eugene … on the other hand, smith started up here and was way overmatched … so i’m happy to see blanks & smith develop at a level where then can have success … both are ultra long-shots … the trade-off’s been development by success vs development by challenge are not obvious to me … here’s where we have to trust the padres …
July 10, 2005 at 2:56 pm
Khalil is putting on a clinic at short today.
July 10, 2005 at 2:59 pm
Chris Hammond, ladies and gentleman!
July 10, 2005 at 3:00 pm
actually, we have daryl Jones at Eugene who needs the work, I would like to see blanks sent up to Ft Wayne. The are a very poor offensive team and could use the help..
July 10, 2005 at 3:01 pm
Polite applause, for Chris Hammond!
July 10, 2005 at 3:02 pm
Daryl Jones has nothing … I could see a swap of Blanks & Jones … ie. let Jones keep going down until he’s successful … he ain’t being successful @ Eugene … but he is a big dude!
July 10, 2005 at 3:09 pm
Trevor lifetime at Coors:
22.2 IP, 23 H, 6 HR, 10 BB, 14 SO, 6.35 ERA
http://tinyurl.com/d8odz
What’s up with the walks…
July 10, 2005 at 3:11 pm
K, one out (Death).
July 10, 2005 at 3:13 pm
Two outs (Taxes).
July 10, 2005 at 3:14 pm
Three outs (Hoffman).
July 10, 2005 at 3:16 pm
Trevor lifetime at Coors (updated):
23.2 IP, 24 H, 6 HR, 10 BB, 16 SO, 6.08 ERA
Gets Closser swinging to let Blum off the hook, win the game, and end the first half on a positive note. Shoulda swept the series, but two out of three ain’t too shabby. If you’d told me before the season that we’d go into the ASB with a 5 1/2 game lead in the NL West, I’d have been ecstatic. Some frustrating moments, no doubt, but we’re in real good position. Just need to get healthy and start playing better baseball come Thursday.
July 10, 2005 at 4:41 pm
I didn’t get a chance to watch the game (was playing ultimate frisbee). What I got from the comments:
“I just cant think of too many managers that would be sitting Nady given the fact of missing your main right handed power bat combined with Nady’s display of power.” - Hank
“Ho hum, Nady hits another home run.” - Geoff
“He just bought himself a benching.” - Kevin
“what the hell? he is taking nady out this early at coors? gawd I hate that doubleswitchingasshole” - Hank
“Nice to see Quantrill getting the chance to swing the bat here instead of Nady.” - Geoff
“oh yeah, who wants to give a guy a chance to hit two homers in one game anyway” - Hank
July 10, 2005 at 5:24 pm
Ducksnorts … all Nady … all the time!
Nady for Mayor!
July 10, 2005 at 10:26 pm
I have missed many games here recently while moving back to San Diego, but Hank’s “doubleswitchingasshole” is a classic. I was watching the game today and screamed “What more does he have to do?” out loud when Nady was removed from the game. It was almost as if Bochy held Nady accountable for not beating Sullivan to the bag when Reyes failed to cover first on the bunt. Bochy probably thought: “Sweeney would have raced across the Rockies to make that play unassisted.”
July 11, 2005 at 7:12 am
Day late and a dollar short, as usual, but I have to throw my .02 in on Nady. I’ve been out of patience since seeing Ojeda start in RF only shortly after hearing the “it’s unfair to play X at 3B during a pennant race” excuse. Now I’ve had to watch a 3 game set in Coors where Sweeney started in front of him in two games and replaced him after only 3 innings in the third game! How can you do that to the best power hitter on the team? Grate, Geoff? I’m chafed raw!!