IGD: Padres vs Cardinals (26 Jul 2005)
Tue, Jul 26, 2005
by Geoff Young
first pitch: 7:05 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4
matchup: Woody Williams (5-6, 4.57 ERA) vs Mark Mulder (11-5, 3.98 ERA)
preview: Padres.com
Phil Nevin remains a Padre for now and takes a seat on the bench. First base? Should belong to Xavier Nady, IMHO, but Mark Sweeney probably will see a lot of time there as well because he’s been around the league longer. As for Nevin, I don’t know that there’s much anybody can do at this point. He’s not good enough to start, he’s too expensive to sit, and he doesn’t want to leave. There isn’t really a good answer to that. The best we can hope for is that Nevin is able to help the team off the bench and that the Padres stop signing guys to bad contracts. I don’t know about the former, but I have a pretty good feeling with Sandy Alderson onboard about the latter.
Meantime, life goes on in the Hot Potato Division. Perhaps the Padres’ new battle cry should be, “At least we had May!”
non-May May
W L RS RA W L RS RA
LA 34 37 303 315 11 17 120 150
Ari 32 41 313 387 16 12 127 143
SF 31 40 329 370 11 16 104 138
SD 28 43 272 325 22 6 160 117
Col 26 43 306 389 9 20 118 156
Padres return home and try to break a seven-game losing streak against the best team in the league. Maybe all the activity over the past few days will galvanize the club and help push them beyond themselves. Yes, I realize this is wishful thinking, but somebody has to win the division and it might as well be the Padres. Here’s to better days…
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July 26, 2005 at 8:12 am
I’m stunned at how dysfunctional this team appears right now - and I grew up watching the Red Sox. If anyone is to blame for this, it’s the SD front office, which should have know better than try and trade a guy to one of the few teams where he has a no-trade clause.
Here’s 2 quick reasons why I’d be happy Nevin stayed in SD:
1 - he spared Pads fans from the possibility of watching Sidney Ponson.
2 - he’s going to have many chances to help this club down the stretch, and this week might have lit a real fire under him.
I may be in the extreme minority, but I’m not sure that Joe Randa will put up much better numbers in Petco over the next couple months than Nevin has posted this year. Randa has a career .765 OPS - Nevin is at .714 right now, more than 140 points lower than his OPS last year. Randa’s numbers this year look like a ballpark inflated abberation. I would bet both guys trend closer to their career averages over the next 2 months.
July 26, 2005 at 8:31 am
I’m sure that the upgrade is not from Phil to Randa.
It’s from Burroughs/K-evin to Randa/Nady.
Yes, chances are Randa will hit worse in Petco. But he’s not expected to belt out HR at clip-rate either. Just hit more.
Having Nady in the lineup will provide a better chance of scoring runs for the Padres.
Also, getting Blum off the starting lineup and into the bench helps a lot.
We’ll see what the lineup is but it looks good in my mind.
Roberts CF
Loretta 2B
Giles RF
Klesko LF
Xady 1B
Randa 3B
Greene SS
Hernandez (with the bad wrist) or Fick C
July 26, 2005 at 8:39 am
I’m disappointed that Nady never got a shot at 3B. I understand why he hasn’t been given time there, but given that this was a stated goal before the season and that the club has gotten zero production out of the position all year, risk aversion be damned, it would’ve been nice to see what X could do over there before unloading a couple young arms for 60 games of Joe Randa.
My biggest hope right now is what Jonathan suggests, that recent events will light a fire not only under Nevin but under the entire team.
July 26, 2005 at 8:49 am
Imagine that the ‘trade’ had never occured. If Towers/Bochy/Alderson had announced that Nevin would simply be replaced with Nady at 1B, bloggers would be rejoicing that at LAST Padre management gets it about getting Nady in the lineup everyday. Plus, you’d have Nevin to come off the bench as a somewhat potent pinch hitting threat (because we know that with his contract and desire to stay in San Diego, as demonstrated by his veto of the Griffey deal, he’s extremely difficult to trade). The praise for this decision would be effusive.
Well, that’s what you have now. But instead of hurrahs we get melancholy.
All year we’ve all been saying they need to get Nady regular at-bats. He will now. I also think that finally giving him one position will help steady both his offense and defense. Going from not playing for days to starting in CF, off a couple more days, to pinch hitting, off a couple more days, to RF cannot be easy on one’s nerves. The organization has seen the light — Nevin ain’t the old Nevin (or perhaps he’s back to the really old pre-Andy Sheets Nevin) and Nady needs to hit four times a day. This is a positive development. And, not getting an expensive, fat-ass, crap pitcher like Sidney Ponson is an extremely positive development (trust me on that).
Admittedly, the situation isn’t perfect, beginning with not winning a game in more than a week and having to face the Cardinals next. There’s undoubtedly some collateral damage in the clubhouse following the ‘trade’. The dollar allocation of the roster is, shall we say, lopsided. But strip away the ‘trade’ and you have Nady at 1B and a new .290-hitting (with some power) 3B.
And a 3 game lead in the division in late July, with the Dodgers and Giants both awful.
All I should need to say is “Shane Victorino” to remind you that this beats the hell out of the previous six clueless years.
Am I saying we all need to be blindly happy and compliant? No. But we should recall that from 1999-2003 (and all of the 70s and most of the 80s and 90s), we were mathematically eliminated by now. Amazingly, this team is still easily the best in the division and two moves were just made to improve the everyday lineup.
60 games left. 3 game lead. Remember the alternative. Stay focused.
July 26, 2005 at 9:06 am
Great point Brian G. we are leading and have been playing lousy. Seems the only way from here is up. Rather have Nevin on the bench then Ponson, although I was betting he would be traded.
Don’t see any other moves for now, so this is it guys, sink or swim.
I wonder about Nevins attitude after this latest attempt to trade him. He could really tanks the clubhouse by grousing and second guessing. He is the leader in the clubhouse, no doubt.
I guess now we will he if he is a man of his word and helps this club even from the Bench.
Who knows, this could be a tryout for management for Mr. 9-mil.
July 26, 2005 at 9:09 am
Bochy:
“And at this point, I’m going to go with matchups, hot bat, whatever it takes to win. I’ll put out the team I think gives our team the best shot to win that games”.
Duh! Apparently, he’s been sleeping with his new contract in hands and forgot to put the best lineup out there to win games.
And Geoff, yeah, I hate losing two arms (one of which is just about ready for MLB) for 60 games of Randa too. Here’s hoping that Randa will hit lots well into October.
July 26, 2005 at 9:18 am
Good points, Brian. The bottom line is, we need to get back on track and start winning again. My biggest concerns right now are a) how well Bochy sticks to the plan of keeping Nevin on the bench and b) how well Nevin will handle himself in that role. I’m also worried about how fans will respond. There seems to be a lot more venom directed at him than is warranted, and that’s a shame.
As long as this really results in more PT for Nady, I’m okay with it. OTOH, I don’t think the “melancholy” of having a guy on your team that isn’t wanted will go away soon. It will color the ballclub - in what way remains to be seen.
July 26, 2005 at 9:25 am
Geoff,
For reasons we’ll probably never be privy to, Nady at 3B was never going to happen (this year, at least).
Agree with you that a lot of it falls to Bochy to resist the temptation to play Nevin when Nady has a couple of 0 for 4s in a row. And I think Nevin should be okay for this year. Next year, no promises.
Oh, and I’m off sangria for a while.
July 26, 2005 at 9:50 am
One thing’s for sure; it won’t be a quiet summer around here, and maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Sorry to hear about the sangria, Brian; I was just starting to get used to your typing.
July 26, 2005 at 9:52 am
On another note, here’s something potentially interesting over at THT that I haven’t had a chance to digest:
http://www.hardballtimes.com/m.....fficiency/
July 26, 2005 at 9:57 am
Trying to change the subject, Oh, I see Geoff just tried to … next time I’m down, I’ll probably try a $5 Petco Pass … http://www.signonsandiego.com/.....cheap.html
July 26, 2005 at 10:48 am
And Jonathan, thanks again for the great interview yesterday! Keep us posted on Burroughs’ progress.
July 26, 2005 at 11:53 am
My pleasure Geoff - I hope folks enjoyed it.
The point made above about Bochy - and the pressure of making a move when Nady has a few 0-4’s is a great point. I wonder about that too. Between Sweeney and Nevin, I get the feeling that Nady doesn’t have much room for error.
As for Burroughs, I’ll be at the park tonight. I’m interested in seeing what the local media turnout is going to be to see Sean. I have a feeling it’ll be a bit more crowded than usual, and I’m interested in how Sean handles all of the attention.
He’s a good kid, I’m hoping he turns this into as positive a development as it can possibly be.
July 26, 2005 at 12:33 pm
I’m not quite sure why Nevin is being made the scapegoat for this losing streak. In fact, the real culprit has been the starting pitching. The Padres offense is always going to look worse than it really is due to Petco, the reverse is obviously true for the pitching. I just hope everyone realizes this.
Now I realize that Nevin’s BB/K ratio is horrendous right now (18/66)which might mean he is done, but then again I think everyone would have agree two months ago that Giambi was finished and look at what he has done since June. He still might have a hot streak in him that will carry the team like he did at points last year.
I think the real problem of the team is the outfield defense, especially Klesko. I’m not a huge fan of Ponson — probably Oxspring could do just as well as he can — but to have the opportunity to get Klesko back to first base would have made it worth it.
I think the solution now is to platoon Klesko and Nevin at first and play Nady in left. Any plan that sticks Nevin on the bench, leaves Klesko in LF and gives meaningful playing time to Mark Sweeney isn’t the right one.
July 26, 2005 at 1:09 pm
I don’t see anyone making Nevin the scapegoat for the current losing streak. The points being made about Nevin are he’s aging, suffering from reduced production, taking up an inordinate amount of salary vs. production, and blocking a younger, better player, not that he’s responsible for the current losing steak.
Also, the current losing streak is primarily (6 out of 7 games) on the road, so Petco has not had an influence on the streak. The offense is just horrible right now, no matter where they are; it’s not just Petco. We were shutout and held to one run in two of the three games in Philly, a great hitter’s park. We were shutout in Coors earlier this month, for crying out loud.
No, the problem is not OF defense, although it is not particularly strong. The problem is our offense stinks. We’ve scored 3 or fewer runs 12 times in July; we’ve been shutout four times and we’ve only scored 1 run four other times. Our leadoff hitter is hitting less than .100 in July. Our former ROY SS is back in a funk after a very short hot streak. Our power guys are not hitting for power. Burroughs had only a .302 SLG before being sent down. That is the problem.
Whew, hopefully that is out of my system. I’ll try not to be such a downer next time. Sorry y’all.
July 26, 2005 at 1:14 pm
The problem is that K-evin is taking substantial ABs away from somebody who’s better, Nady.
The Padres OPS as a team is only slightly better on the road (.739 vs .728 at home), while the opponents are way better against the Padres from away Petco (.789 vs .685).
Nady who has way better numbers than Phil while playing is sitting on the bench. Phil’s number for the season is comparable to Khalil Greene. This in unacceptable for a #4 hitter.
The Padres cannot possibly keep counting on the pitching to carry the team. Yes, the pitching had been better in the earlier part of the season, however, the offense has not gotten better as the season progresses.
Benching Phil will only give the team a better chance at winning. Of course, the team has other problems such as OF defense as shown by the 30+ more doubles hit by the opponents.
But replacing Phil with Nady is an immediate improvement.
So, more ABs for Nady, fewer for Phil.
July 26, 2005 at 1:21 pm
No worries, Pat. I think we all need a hug.
July 26, 2005 at 1:34 pm
Joe Randa, 3B, Padres: As a Red against the Cardinals this season, he hit .457 with six RBIs in 10 games. He’s a .374 career hitter vs. the Cards, and is one for one as a Padre since being traded there last week.
Cardinals manager Tony La Russa joked that the Padres “might have acquired Randa just because we’re coming to town.”
July 26, 2005 at 2:26 pm
I think that quite a few people are suffering from the delusion that Nady will become an everyday player at first base. Not so.. While Nevin was on the disabled list(the same as being gone) Mark Sweeney got the majority of the starts at first base. Nady has started most of the games against a lefty(Nady 77ab’s/Nevin 77ab’s). The ONLY way things will change is IF Klesko is moved back to 1b and Nady becomes the regular outfielder. Otherwise Nady is going to wind up on the short end of a platoon with Sweeney and we already saw how many games that won for us.
July 26, 2005 at 2:29 pm
Pat - well said!
Farm Report … The Hammer is on the board @ Portland … HR #1 … http://www.minorleaguebaseball.....a_freaaa_1
July 26, 2005 at 2:51 pm
Apologies if this has already been posted, but I found this a good read … http://www.signonsandiego.com/.....anepa.html … perplexing!
July 26, 2005 at 3:40 pm
short trip to the bench…
Nevin is starting tonight at catcher..and hitting cleanup..Nady is starting at 1b.
the real test will be tomorrow when we face a righty.. will nady be in the lineup or on the bench watching sweeney play first and klesko play left?
July 26, 2005 at 3:55 pm
Catcher? CATCHER??!! I mean, I know he’s played the position before but have they taken leave of their minds?
Does this mean Ramon is having surgery?
July 26, 2005 at 4:06 pm
????huh?
July 26, 2005 at 4:10 pm
hank - you’re a hoot!
July 26, 2005 at 4:17 pm
Wow, that is a fascinating move. When is the last time Nevin started a game behind the plate in the big leagues? Give the guy credit, he’s trying to make it work.
July 26, 2005 at 4:29 pm
Good thing the Cardinals aren’t a very good hitting team otherwise they’d really take advantage of an inexperienced catcher…
July 26, 2005 at 4:41 pm
Hernandez to have surgery. Man, this team can’t catch a break, pardon the pun. Its his wrist I guess. Never was a real Hernandez fan, all that wavey hair and all, but apparently he is pretty good so this is another big lose.
And Nevin is catching. Boy, what a funny team we have, what a funny game baseball is. I guess if we can’t trade him, well beat him up behind the plate. Christ, every single is an automatic double now.
Don’t worry, be happy, its only the St Louis Bigbirds in town. We swept them last time.
****Whistling*****
July 26, 2005 at 4:43 pm
it appears that Ramon is getting another MRI and wont be available tonight. Possibly out for the season if surgery is required(perish the thought). Looks pretty bleak on the catching front. Ojeda is struggling in Portland so they plan on Fick and Nevin until they get clearance on Ramon.
The good news is: Nevin and Ramon have virtually identical offensive numbers(despite Nevin’s down year) so offensively we will still be offensive.
July 26, 2005 at 4:54 pm
Ladies and gentlemen, your San Diego MacGyvers…
July 26, 2005 at 4:59 pm
Who’s catching for the Surf Dawgs? Anybody think TK’s still got game?
July 26, 2005 at 5:11 pm
Is it possible that Jim Leyritz is both the Padres’ all-time worst 3B AND catcher?
Trying to think of other Padres to play both positions — Mike Ivie, Leyritz and…Phil Nevin. Not necessarily the most complimentary list to be a part of.
July 26, 2005 at 5:26 pm
I think I’ve found Nevin’s last big-league start at catcher:
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxe.....ON1999.htm
Rivera led off; Gwynn, Joyner, and Magadan all were in the lineup; Clement was pitching; the game was played in Montreal; and we lost, 8-0.
July 26, 2005 at 5:39 pm
A fun read to take your mind off things — How would today’s players hit with bats from Honus Wagner, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth and Shoeless Joe Jackson?
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn.....&num=0
July 26, 2005 at 5:53 pm
Got to give Nevin credit…he could very easily say “screw you, I’m not getting behind the plate and having the crap beat out of me”..but if Ramon is out..we need a catcher and based on what we’ve got available to choose from…he’s not the worst option. We could bring out Miguel “caught Looking” Ojeda.
July 26, 2005 at 6:44 pm
Nevin on pre-game show with Matt V. He’s saying all the right things. Really wants to be in San Diego, really wants to win as a Padre, willing to do whatever it takes to make it happen. Maybe they can turn this whole thing into a rallying point. Let’s start kicking some ass again.
July 26, 2005 at 6:55 pm
He’s definitely taking the high road in this whole situation. Let’s hope the team can rally around this and start winning some games.
July 26, 2005 at 7:15 pm
Just what we need: to host the Cards while we’re on a seven game losing streak. Will we make ten in a row?!?!
July 26, 2005 at 7:17 pm
Ah, the good ol’ 9-4 putout. No hit for Loretta.
July 26, 2005 at 7:19 pm
what the heck, no wonder we dont score runs.
ey knows better than that. geeesh
July 26, 2005 at 7:19 pm
Nice ovation for Nevin.
July 26, 2005 at 7:20 pm
Nevin will prolly try so hard he will strike out four times
July 26, 2005 at 7:23 pm
Drew a walk. Mulder is behind 3-1 to Randa.
July 26, 2005 at 7:26 pm
ey doesnt screw up there, he scores on that fly out…
dang…spilt milk i guess
July 26, 2005 at 7:29 pm
Tough play for EY. Taguchi almost caught that ball. If he does, it’s a double play.
July 26, 2005 at 7:33 pm
Bases loaded, nobody out. Woody limits the Cards to just one run. Take that every time.
July 26, 2005 at 7:51 pm
Everyone keeps talking about Randa being a good defensive third baseman but they all cite errors. His range factors are pretty nice. First number is his RF, second is league RF:
2005: 2.82 ???
2004: 2.74 2.34
2003: 2.64 2.35
2002: 2.65 2.40
2001: 2.67 2.41
2000: 2.71 2.31
1999: 2.78 2.21
1998: 2.42 2.23
1997: 2.61 2.19
1996: 1.90 2.18
Very solid.
July 26, 2005 at 8:09 pm
Listening to the Beavers game. McAnulty just homered.
July 26, 2005 at 8:12 pm
Burroughs singled to left his first at-bat. Infield single behind second base his second at-bat.
July 26, 2005 at 8:12 pm
if ramon goes on the d/l, they could just decide to go with nevin and fick and call up Mac..
we have been making too many mistakes..
youngs baserunning mistake..
miscommunication in left field for gall’s double leads to a run.
failure to pick randa’s throw almost leads to another run.
July 26, 2005 at 8:18 pm
Leitner and Coleman are talking about the Mulder trade.
Neither of them have ever heard of Daric Barton.
Good to know they do their homework.
July 26, 2005 at 8:23 pm
Will the Pads ever score another run?!?!
The offense has completely run aground. This just isn’t a particularly good team. It isn’t a good team, at all.
July 26, 2005 at 8:39 pm
Burroughs draws a walk for Portland.
Daric Barton is a stud. If they haven’t heard of him yet, they will.
July 26, 2005 at 8:44 pm
You may be right Lance. We are all operating on the assumption that the Padres are the team that played great baseball in May. One great month and we all hung our hats on that. But two months later and we have a mediocre team at best with piss poor hitting.
Already 6 LOBs and I ain’t talkin tennis.
Got to blame Petco partly. Place is a graveyard for fly balls.
Hitters are not stringing hits together.
Ah well, weather is nice here.
*****whistling****
July 26, 2005 at 8:53 pm
And there she blows, the Cardnal hitting breaks through. Folks, its the only the top of the sixth, but at 4-0, I’d say its time to hit the parking lot. Pads are done for tonight. I hope I’m wrong.
July 26, 2005 at 8:57 pm
And Nady just keeps hitting. Geez, Edmonds almost made a circus catch on that one.
July 26, 2005 at 9:03 pm
This team doesn’t do ANYTHING well enough to make me think they’re better than average.
I think we’re lucky that they’re at .500.
July 26, 2005 at 9:06 pm
finally they string some hits together..
dang its been a long time coming..
could have had more but its a start
July 26, 2005 at 9:18 pm
Hey, some hits. Feels good.
July 26, 2005 at 9:28 pm
Hey, let’s get some runs!
July 26, 2005 at 9:30 pm
9 left on base.
July 26, 2005 at 9:38 pm
Gees Phil, 5 LOBs!
July 26, 2005 at 9:50 pm
10 left on base.
July 26, 2005 at 9:59 pm
hero time….we need a hero..
somebody get on and somebody be a hero..
giles or nevin get a chance if someone gets on
July 26, 2005 at 10:00 pm
I’m holding out for a hero.
July 26, 2005 at 10:06 pm
well here it is…
hero time..
July 26, 2005 at 10:07 pm
no hero today..damn..
July 26, 2005 at 10:07 pm
Nevin makes the last out. 11 left on base, six from him, I think. The Padres are 50-50.
July 26, 2005 at 10:18 pm
The Padres are just awful. I can’t stand it anymore.