IGD: Padres @ Cardinals (25 Sep 06)

Mon, Sep 25, 2006Ballhype: hype it up!
by Geoff Young

first pitch: 5:10 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4SD
matchup: David Wells (2-5, 4.80) vs Jeff Suppan (12-7, 4.07 ERA)
previews: Padres.com | SI.com | ESPN
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The Padres head to St. Louis in a matchup of the two NL division leaders that are still looking to clinch a playoff spot. The Padres’ magic number is 6, while the Cardinals’ is 5. The Friars also are up 2 1/2 games on St. Louis in the battle for home-field advantage in the first round.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

David Wells remains in search of his first win since returning to the Padres. Right now he is easily the weakest link in the rotation, and it’d be nice to see him get into a groove. The good news is, he hasn’t looked terrible in his four starts for San Diego. The bad news is, “hasn’t looked terrible” doesn’t really cut it when you’re gunning for the playoffs.

Current Cardinals are batting .293/.321/.537 against Wells in 147 at-bats. Scott Rolen (.444/.444/1.222 in 9 AB), Jim Edmonds (.314/.351/.629 in 35 AB), and Juan Encarnacion (.292/.320/.583 in 24 AB) have been the chief culprits.

Meantime, Jeff Suppan continues to excel at getting the maximum out of the minimum. He allows a ton of hits, he doesn’t have impeccable control, and he doesn’t strike people out. All he does is win games and post respectable ERAs. And unfortunately for the Padres, he’s got a couple other things working for him: Suppan has a 2.97 ERA over 97 innings at home this year, and a remarkable 2.04 ERA over 83 2/3 innings since the All-Star break. Difficult to explain, but there it is.

Current Padres are batting .326/.379/.624 against Suppan in 178 at-bats. Mike Piazza (.533/.533/1.533) has five homers in 15 at-bats. Dave Roberts (.667/.700/1.111 in 9 AB), Geoff Blum (.571/.571/.714 in 14 AB), and Brian Giles (.273/.370/.545 in 24 AB) also have enjoyed success against the finesse right-hander.

Big series at Busch begins tonight. Go Padres!

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221 Responses to “IGD: Padres @ Cardinals (25 Sep 06)”

  1. Geoff Young Says:

    As previously noted, Wells has been scratched in favor of rookie Mike Thompson. Wish I’d known that this morning when I was doing my research. ;-)

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  2. Nick G. Says:

    Wells has missed time with gout before. I think it was about 8 yrs ago, when he was with the Yanks.

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  3. Didi Says:

    Go Padres! Let’s go and beat those Cards.

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  4. Clayton Says:

    Giles, double play, surprising no one

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  5. Ben B. Says:

    The Cardinals announcers have done their homework: they mentioned the Padres have the best rotation in the NL and that their hitting is much better on the road than at home. And now they’re showing home/road splits for Giles. Good work so far.

    Not another grounder to the right side with a runner on. That is brutal. I think Giles needs to be leading off now, with the way Roberts has struggled and the way Giles is prone to hitting those routine grounders.

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  6. Mark Says:

    Yeah I don’t think there is any doubt that Giles has given them close to nothing for the past 10 days. It’s hard to continue to win games when your #1 and #2 hitters are lucky to get on base once per game between the two of them.

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  7. Ben B. Says:

    As of three pitches, Mike Thompson looks excellent.

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  8. Clayton Says:

    Super, off to a hot start tonight

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  9. Ben B. Says:

    Oops. That fourth pitch was not so hot.

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  10. Clayton Says:

    Ben B - talk about how good Suppan looks, please!

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  11. Ben B. Says:

    Yeah, Suppan is definitely dominating the Padres. They’ll be lucky to get any hits tonight. Actually, he did have a really good first inning with three easy ground balls, and getting ahead of every batter.

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  12. Ben B. Says:

    Another easy grounder. Ouch.

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  13. Ben B. Says:

    Lucky hit. We’re still doomed.

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  14. Sean Callahan Says:

    So Wells, in all likelihood, will have been worth zero wins this (regular) season. The Padres damn well better make the World Series after giving up Kottaras.

    Do you suppose that the reason the Dodgers and Diamondbacks have good farm systems is because they don’t trade their best prospects for 43-year old one month rentals?

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  15. Ben B. Says:

    Another lucky hit. Here comes the routine ground ball double play.

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  16. Clayton Says:

    Keep talking, Ben B…

    FYI, U2 and GreenDay absolutely ROCKING the superdome right now

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  17. Marsh Says:

    is anyone else convinced that we didn’t lose much when Kalil went down?

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  18. Ben B. Says:

    Ok, now ground ball on the first pitch to Barfield, because that’s what he does. Ok, I was late there, on the second or third pitch now.

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  19. Clayton Says:

    Sweet…let’s get into that nice, soft Cards bullpen…

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  20. Marsh Says:

    Clayton/Ben B — I know what you’re doing and I LOVE IT….

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  21. Clayton Says:

    re 17: we lost the Female 13-34 demographic

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  22. Ben B. Says:

    Wow, too slow on that one. And look what happened. Well, here’s the Doc to end the rally, since he has been slumping so badly recently.

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  23. Mark Says:

    um last I checked the Dodgers traded Guzman this past season for Julio Lugo who doesn’t even start on an everyday basis for them.

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  24. Marsh Says:

    re 21: you wouldn’t know enough about that demographic to know if it was ever even there…

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  25. Ben B. Says:

    Lucky break there. I’m calling it right now, with Giles up it will be like always: grounder to second.

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  26. Clayton Says:

    Atta boy BG!! make a liar out of me, I don’t care!

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  27. Bryan Says:

    REDBIRD SOUP FOR BRIAN GILES

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  28. Clayton Says:

    re 24

    You either, newly-30 boy!

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  29. Ben B. Says:

    It’s a good thing the Cardinals’ center fielder sucks, because that should have been out number 3. Suppan, despite the apparent results, it’s still dominating.

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  30. Marsh Says:

    wait - was that Giles? I was focusing on the 2nd baseman but I never saw the ball… did he do something other than ground out to 2nd??

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  31. Mark Says:

    Should have been caught, seriously? I thought that looked like a line drive off the wall

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  32. Marsh Says:

    re 29: LOL! (which isn’t good becuase I’m in the middle of “quiet hours” at my grad school library…

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  33. Clayton Says:

    I’m just estimating, but I think Suppan is on pitch #100 already

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  34. Ben B. Says:

    That one should have been a strikeout. The ump is just blind.

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  35. Marsh Says:

    is now to early to go to Cla Meredith? I’m thinking he could get through the next 5 innings in 45 pitches or less….

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  36. Ben B. Says:

    In every other part of my life, I am a sane, completely rational person. Yet once a rally like that starts, even though it clearly has absolutely nothing to do with what I’m writing here, I just have to keep going with the reverse jinxing.

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  37. Peter Friberg Says:

    Lovin’ it!!!

    http://padresrundown.blogspot......y-off.html

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  38. Peter Friberg Says:

    LOL @ 35

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  39. Clayton Says:

    Thompson trying to set a team record for GB to Short induced. Not that there’s anything wrong with that…

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  40. Sean Callahan Says:

    re 23: The Dodgers got Lugo to fill in for Kent and Garciapra while they were on the DL. They’ll also get a draft pick if they lose Lugo to free agency.

    When Wells retires, what will we have to show for the trade?

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  41. Peter Friberg Says:

    re: 40 Kottaras doing well for the Red Sox

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  42. Peter Friberg Says:

    re. 40: hopefully this shiney gold trophy thing I saw some of the White Sox players holding….

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  43. Mark Says:

    Well if you are comparing Kotteras to Guzman I don’t think anyone values Kotteras more, Guzman has such a high upside.

    That draft pick is hardly a done deal considering how Lugo has played. A .541 OPS over 131 AB’s is not a good trade for the Dodgers, especially when they turned around and still brought in Betemit to play 3B.

    Lugo and Betemit were overkill for the Dodgers. Wells was a bad trade when it happened and it is a worse trade now that he is hurt.

    Mark

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  44. Kevin Says:

    re: 11

    Suppan is dominating. The Padres will be lucky to get anyting going tonight–just five runs on five hits through two innings.

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  45. Clayton Says:

    Saints block a punt on ATL’s first possession - TD, New Orleans. Couldn’t write a better script.

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  46. Bryan Says:

    OT: My friend was at the game on Friday night and he got me one of the player calendars that they gave out. It has next year’s schedule in it, and it looks like we don’t have a game on Opening Day. We don’t start till Tuesday, the 3rd, in San Francisco. I don’t know about anybody else, but Opening Day is BY FAR my favorite day of the year, bar none. And not having a game that day, home or away, kinda ruins it. :(

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  47. Marsh Says:

    re 43: yeah, after hoping to claim that Well’s stats would “tell the tale”, I am not left to believe that his acquisition was nothing more than an injection of life — a necessary injection — into the rest of the club. note the word “injection”, as I believe that Brian Giles only responds after a “cycle” of “injections”…..

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  48. Clayton Says:

    ok, could use a triple-play here

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  49. Clayton Says:

    DP works too, now make it pay off and get out of the inning w/ no more damage

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  50. Marsh Says:

    can we all make a pact here? Rudy Seanez should not be allowed anywhere near the field this evening…

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  51. Clayton Says:

    Sometimes these big early leads work against you…you stop focusing as much, meanwhile the other team just starts chipping away, gaining momentum. Need MT to keep inducing those nice ground balls…get a couple more innings and turn this thing over to the pen

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  52. Clayton Says:

    man on for Giles, but 2 outs…no DP chance here!

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  53. Clayton Says:

    Good baserunning by Doc there - ready to go as soon as that ball hopped away from the catcher

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  54. Peter Friberg Says:

    Just got off the phone w/ Padres’ minor league 3B David Freese - I’ll have his interview up probably within 24 hours…

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  55. Clayton Says:

    Wow….LaRussa going to the ‘pen early!

    Every time I see him go to the mound, I think:

    “Daniel LaRusso’s gonna fight? Daniel LaRusso’s gonna fight!”

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  56. Nick G. Says:

    I love Doc Roberts

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  57. Clayton Says:

    Me too. unfortunately Walker didn’t get the job done this time

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  58. Clayton Says:

    great, manny alexander, defensive specialist, with the E

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  59. Ben B. Says:

    The Cardinals’ announcers just criticized Todd Walker for making that poor third, launching into the speech about how he’s had difficulties making the transition to third base with the longer throw. One problem: that was Manny Alexander.

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  60. Clayton Says:

    Bochy needs to go to the ‘pen early. Is Chan Ho available?

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  61. Nick G. Says:

    Is walker hurt?

    Boch said CHP is not 100%, but availble for a couple of innings if needed.

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  62. Clayton Says:

    You have got to be kidding me

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  63. SD Padres Gal Says:

    I just come home to THIS!!!!

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  64. Clayton Says:

    So much for that lead

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  65. SD Padres Gal Says:

    I curse on Edmonds. His mother was a hamster and his father smelt of elderberries.

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  66. Nick G. Says:

    CRAP

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  67. Mark O Says:

    yikes..

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  68. Nick G. Says:

    Well, we all know the Cards can hit . . . and there’s exhibit A

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  69. Clayton Says:

    LaRussa looking like an effing genius tonight. Takes suppan out, reliever (didn’t catch name) K’s Walker to end threat. Pinch hits with Edmonds, 3 run jack to tie the game. No way Bochy should have left Thompson in to face him in that situation.

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  70. SD Padres Gal Says:

    Adkins in for Thompson…one batter too late

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  71. Nick G. Says:

    Who’s warming up? Anyone? I’m watching on GameDay

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  72. Mark Says:

    Someone should explain to Bochy that there is only 1 week left in the season and Thompson hadn’t pitched in 2 weeks….maybe he shouldn’t have been expecting 6 IP.

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  73. Nick G. Says:

    scratch #71. pretend like I never wrote that

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  74. Ben B. Says:

    On the bright side, Houston has tied up Philly 4-4 in the top of the 7th.

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  75. Clayton Says:

    There was a rumor, maybe it was Olney’s blog, that St Louis might not retain Edmonds next year. Wonder if he wants to come play RF in SD?

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  76. Nick G. Says:

    I can’t believe Wells has freakin’ gout.

    At least they only tied. Just like 0-0 . . . just like 0-0 . . . just like 0-0 (I’m going to keep saying that until I feel better)

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  77. Nick G. Says:

    Curious move putting Alexander in . .. I know Walker has had his problems, but . . .

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  78. Ben B. Says:

    Was Alexander put in just for defense, or is Walker hurt? If it’s just for defense - a defensive replacement in the fourth inning with your #6 pitcher starting?

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  79. Nick G. Says:

    Walker’s gotta be hurt . . .

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  80. BigKTfan Says:

    Stros take the lead, 5-4.

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  81. Clayton Says:

    what about branyan? any update?

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  82. Clayton Says:

    Nice play by Manny to rob pujols. Not that that makes up for the E last inning…

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  83. Clayton Says:

    Cassidy up in the pen, if we get to Adkins’ spot in the order with a man on, looks like Cassidy will pitch the 6th

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  84. Ben B. Says:

    Ouch, this is brutal. Isn’t the Cardinals’ pen their huge weakness?

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  85. Clayton Says:

    supposedly. can’t believe Bochy left Thompson in there to face Edmonds. No way that should have happened. How many ridiculous, one-in-a-million HRs are we going to face during this pennant chase?

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  86. Mark Says:

    Anybody know why Bochy hates Cassidy so much? I mean the guy has an ERA under 3 with decent peripherals.

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  87. LynchMob Says:

    OT … good to see Zach Greinke back in the bigs for KC … http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/boxscore?gid=260925109

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  88. Clayton Says:

    Cassidy worked into and out of a jam there…threw about 50 pitches

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  89. LynchMob Says:

    Wow, I just noticed that Preston Wilson is hitting leadoff for the Cards? That can’t be a good/right thing, can it? If Bochy did that, we’d be screaming bloody murder!

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  90. Kevin Says:

    Stark on Hoffman:

    http://insider.espn.go.com/esp.....n#20060925

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  91. Ben B. Says:

    It seems like we’re getting jobbed on calls on the corner. Maybe two or three pitches on the black for us called balls and two or three called strikes for them. I guess when Cassidy is throwing balls by them in those locations it doesn’t become an issue.

    And, yeah, Preston Wilson leading off is a sign of the lack of depth in this Cardinal lineup. They have Pujols and Rolen, and Duncan has hit really well, but beyond that the lineup is pretty weak.

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  92. Ben B. Says:

    Maybe the team could get their second hit outside of that big second inning. Naaw, too much to ask.

    Oops, there it is. Even if it was really, really ugly.

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  93. Marsh Says:

    Eckstein hit a foul off his upper knee last night on a splitter from Clemens.. not sure if that is what has taken him out of the lineup or not, but happened to see it — it looked pretty f’n painful….

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  94. LynchMob Says:

    Giles enables Manny to have a “productive AB” … I s’pose …

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  95. Clayton Says:

    Big CHOPPAH by Piazza to take the lead!

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  96. Ben B. Says:

    Attaway Padres! Way to absolutely murder those hits. Wow.

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  97. Marsh Says:

    i swear, every time I jump on this site and start baggin’ on Giles, he starts producing…. whatever…

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  98. Clayton Says:

    Gonzalez pulls a Giles

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  99. LynchMob Says:

    Bing!

    - B. Giles ground rule double to left
    - M. Alexander sacrificed to catcher, B. Giles to third
    - M. Piazza singled to left, B. Giles scored

    More! More! More!

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  100. Clayton Says:

    We’re into the 7th with a lead…let’s see if Meredith/Linebrink/Hoffman can get ‘er done

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  101. Marsh Says:

    come on Astros… come on Astros….come on Astros….

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  102. LynchMob Says:

    One more inning for Cassidy? Or bring in Cla?

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  103. Marsh Says:

    Bring in Cla! Bring in Cla! Bring in Cla!

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  104. Clayton Says:

    FYI, Fantasy Football fans: Shaun Alexander out indefinitely with a broken foot. Madden cover jinx lives on…

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  105. LynchMob Says:

    It’s not obvious to me to root for the Astros … I’m interested to take my chances of knockin’ them Dogs outta the picture completly :-)

    OTOH … facing the Dogs in the playoffs would be fun … especially ’cause it’d mean the NL pennant is on the line!

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  106. Marsh Says:

    I’m not as fascinated with Embree as is Bochy, but if this clears Cla for the 8th, then it’s all good

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  107. LynchMob Says:

    Bochy chooses … (c) none of the above … hmmm …

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  108. Clayton Says:

    Nope, just saves Meredith for Poo-holes

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  109. Ben B. Says:

    Here comes THE CLA!

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  110. LynchMob Says:

    Now bring in Cla?

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  111. LynchMob Says:

    Ah … OK …

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  112. Bfeeder Says:

    When in Rome…Bochy does his best LaRussa impersonation and opens the revolving bullpen door…

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  113. Clayton Says:

    Let’s see how “on” Cla is after 2 IP yesterday afternoon

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  114. LynchMob Says:

    Embree does the LOOGY thing … one of my favorite wikipedia entries … http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LOOGY :-)

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  115. Clayton Says:

    I’m nervous…feel like he’s “sizing” up Cla here

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  116. Clayton Says:

    never mind - retract!

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  117. Marsh Says:

    Cla! Cla! Cla! Cla!

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  118. Marsh Says:

    seriously, righties look as bad against Cla as lefties do against Mariano Rivera….

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  119. Ben B. Says:

    SIT DOWN PUJOLS! Wow. How often do you see Pujols swing that badly? And even on the pitches he fouled off he just pounded them into the ground weakly.

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  120. LynchMob Says:

    re: 115 … he *was* sizing him up … and that’s a dangerous thing … be wary of the Pujols … be very wary! Way to go Cla!

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  121. LynchMob Says:

    Yahoo’s box shows Embree pitching the whole inning … tech ain’t perfect …

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  122. Clayton Says:

    bottom 9 in Philly, still 5-4 Hou

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  123. Geoff Young Says:

    That was a filthy sequence to Pujols. You just don’t see him swing like that real often.

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  124. LynchMob Says:

    A better place I should go more often is http://snap.stats.com/premium/.....925124.asp

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  125. Rich Campbell Says:

    I wish! (they just put Scott Rolen’s name up as batting for SD.)

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  126. Clayton Says:

    re 125

    Did we trade Manny for him, straight up in the middle of the game? Done and done!

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  127. Marsh Says:

    2 outs, bottom 9, Phillies down 1 with nobody on… our old buddy Dan Wheeler on the hill…

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  128. Marsh Says:

    Game! Astros beat Phillies!!

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  129. Stu Says:

    Astros win 6-5

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  130. Mark Says:

    damn no Linebrink? Is he hurt?

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  131. Stu Says:

    sorry, make the 5-4. right result, wrong score. my bad.

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  132. Rich Campbell Says:

    re: 126 Geoff Blum was the real batter…sorry Geoff; love ya man, but you would be gone so fast …

    Houston beats Philly 5-4!

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  133. Marsh Says:

    is it wrong to want to pitch Cla in every inning? seriously, the guy’s up there throwing like a 2nd baseman to 1st base… his arm can totally take the abuse….

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  134. Clayton Says:

    Meredith still in there…hope he’s got the Steve Austin bionic arm

    RE: Astros…that puts more pressure on the Cards here, they’ve got to be feeling the heat - that was an 8.5 game lead like a week ago!

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  135. Rich Campbell Says:

    Cla was left in through the eighth yesterday too…just a thought; are we seeing an audition?

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  136. BigKTfan Says:

    Linebrink might be pithcing the 9th. Trevor’s worked a lot lately.

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  137. Marsh Says:

    13 pitches, 10 strikes, 4 outs….

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  138. Kevin Says:

    Scott Linebrink has been marginalized, thank goodness. Has Bochy or anyone said anything about this.

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  139. Mark Says:

    This could be a game where Hoffman is not available so Linebrink gets the 9th

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  140. SD Padres Gal Says:

    this may be outta a left field, but do you think they’re stretching Cla’s appearances to convert him to a possible starter?

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  141. Clayton Says:

    Khalil gets that grounder

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  142. Clayton Says:

    And Heeeeeeeeere’s Liney!

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  143. Marsh Says:

    I don’t agree with this move… Cla had thrown all of 17 pitches… Liney scares me…. of course, this Schumaker kid would only scare me if he was behind the wheel of an F1….

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  144. Clayton Says:

    The “Linebrink Run” would NOT be a good idea here

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  145. Clayton Says:

    Wow - that was a heckuva first cut!

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  146. Mark Says:

    That was good. I did not think replacing Meredith with Linebrink was a good move, but it worked out. But on the whole, Meredith has been much better.

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  147. Marsh Says:

    what happened to liney hitting upper 90’s on his fastball?? btw - was that willy mays hays running the bases?

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  148. Ben B. Says:

    Linebrink is better against lefties than righties, I think. And lefties actually have a chance against Meredith.

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  149. Clayton Says:

    Seriously…amateur hour out there

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  150. LynchMob Says:

    Wow, Houston used 9 pitchers … 1 got a Win … 3 got Holds … 1 got a Save … http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/boxscore?gid=260925122 … Philly burned 7 pitchers in defeat!

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  151. Clayton Says:

    Nice piece o’ hitting, Rob Bowen! Let’s get some margin here…DR needs to hit a double so Giles can’t come up with the oh-so-tempting DP sitting there. (”Must…ground out…to second….”)

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  152. Kevin Says:

    Padres could help the Cardinals collapse in this series.

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  153. Ben B. Says:

    151: It’s funny because it’s true.

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  154. Clayton Says:

    uh oh - prove me wrong Brian

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  155. Ben B. Says:

    Uh oh. Dave Roberts on first base with Brian Giles coming up. Less than two outs. Here we go.

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  156. Kiel Says:

    Wikipedia:

    Many still believe that gout is caused by a combination of dietary factors and “laziness”. In particular, many believe that gout develops following several years of excessive alcohol consumption combined with an ongoing lack of physical activity and a diet completely lacking in purine-neutralising foods, such as berries, as well as other specific fruit and vegetables.

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  157. Clayton Says:

    thank you doc, now the obligatory gb to 2nd doesn’t kill 2 birds

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  158. Kevin Says:

    Roberts: 45 steals

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  159. Mark O Says:

    Manny Alexander with the chance to hit into the DP… Mr. Hoffman warming up in the bullpen..

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  160. Clayton Says:

    here’s where some bench depth would be good, can’t stomach having Manny hitting third in the lineup….ahhh…there’s my man. Muscles Branyan, let’s get it on!

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  161. Kevin Says:

    That’s the most by a Padres player since Bip Roberts had 46 in 1990.

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  162. Mark O Says:

    Would be a great time to see that “freakish power” from Branyan..

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  163. Clayton Says:

    trying to work RB on the o/s corner…a good idea, unless you miss over the middle

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  164. Clayton Says:

    as far as freakish power goes, did look like he hit that a mile in the air

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  165. Clayton Says:

    dammit. how does doc get gunned out at home? really thought Liney helped himself out there

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  166. LynchMob Says:

    So who plays 3B in bottom of 9th?

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  167. Stu Says:

    Scott Linebrink, professional hitter…

    dammit.

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  168. Mark O Says:

    Branyan at 3rd in the 9th..

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  169. Coronado Mike Says:

    That makes no sense…Pinch hit for Manny Alexander and then not pinch hit Linebrink.

    I understand that we want to keep Scotty in the game to close and I fully agree, but why depress your defense if you are not going to go all the way through with it?

    It just seems if you are going to play for 1 run, you really should play for 1 run. Hopefully this works out, but I just wonder sometimes…

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  170. Clayton Says:

    not a good start

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  171. Ben B. Says:

    Yikes. And now Pujols is going to come up.

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  172. Kiel Says:

    I was hoping we’d get to see Pujols.

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  173. Stu Says:

    A double play ball would be quite nice right here.

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  174. Clayton Says:

    c’mon, nice easy ground ball here…

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  175. Clayton Says:

    ok - I’m going on record right now - this CANNOT happen again to us, no way no how

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  176. Clayton Says:

    (meaning some ridiculous walkoff HR)

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  177. Ben B. Says:

    Can we bring Meredith back in to pitch to Pujols?

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  178. Rich Campbell Says:

    I agree with Matty…He went.

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  179. Clayton Says:

    3-0, just give him 1B, you’ve lost this AB

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  180. Rich Campbell Says:

    I don’t like this…not at all…Rolen may be struggling, but he deserves his rep…

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  181. Ben B. Says:

    No, you can’t walk him like that. Now the run scores on a single. Although I’d have to say those first two pitches looked like strikes to me.

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  182. Rich Campbell Says:

    prove me wrong, please!

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  183. Coronado Mike Says:

    WoooHooo

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  184. Clayton Says:

    Phew!

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  185. Rich Campbell Says:

    HUGE! That is a full 2 game lead folks…

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  186. Stu Says:

    YES!!!

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  187. Coronado Mike Says:

    And regarding my post #169…just b/c it works does not mean it was the right thing to do.

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  188. Kevin Says:

    No sweat. Easy inning.

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  189. Geoff Young Says:

    Whew, just got done taping a radio segment in time to see Scotty close it out. That was a little nervewracking.

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  190. Rich Campbell Says:

    Prince Albert’s attitude when he plays the Pads reminds me of the organ that a Prince Albert also refers to…remember the sucker punch on Bennett?

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  191. Ben B. Says:

    2 games with 6 to play! That’s 2 games over both Philly and LA. Good work yet again by the bullpen. And that go ahead run featured two of the luckiest hits I’ve seen, but I’ll take it.

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  192. BigKTfan Says:

    All I can say is I’m glad that you guys weren’t managing today! Based on the comments on the board, if Bochy heeds your advice, Pads lose 7-4.

    BTW, great win! Thanks, Boch!

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  193. Kevin Says:

    Walking Pujols was the right thing to do. Every day of the week. They never “lost” that at-bat, because their intention was to walk him to the entire time. It was an unintentional intentional walk.

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  194. Kevin Says:

    Magic number: 5

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  195. Masticore317 Says:

    Whew…nailbiter, especially on the dialup!

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  196. Bryan Says:

    The past week in Padres baseball:

    A San Diego pitcher two outs away from a no-hitter.
    An all-time major league record broken.
    A single from Scott Linebrink.

    Which of the above is the most amazing?

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  197. Geoff Young Says:

    What, no love for Piazza’s triple? ;-)

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  198. LynchMob Says:

    192 … well said!

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  199. Rich Campbell Says:

    So that makes the Magic Number 5, right?

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  200. Rich Campbell Says:

    re:194 yep, I always think I’ve done it wrong…so I’m glad you’re confirming it…

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  201. Mark O Says:

    I think the at-bat with Pujols was all based on the first pitch….if that pitch gets called a strike (which it certainly looked like it was), Linebrink pitches him more aggressively..but after he fell behind he was in trouble. Also..the difference between Pujols and Rolen….Rolen swung at the same pitch that Pujols took twice..

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  202. LaMar Says:

    Hey, GY, maybe we should have a meet up down at Petco on the big screen on a night if it looks like the Padres can clinch. What do you think?

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  203. Bryan Says:

    197: Brilliant, GY. Five stars.

    I’d be so down to head down to the Park at the Park for a possible “you-know-what” type of game (my brother and I don’t say the C word, September baseball calls for superstition). Celebrating with all the Padres fans there and then down in the Gaslamp would be awesome.

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  204. LynchMob Says:

    OT … Travis Chick getting another pasting for the M’s … http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/boxscore?gid=260925112

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  205. Geoff Young Says:

    A meetup? Oooh, I’m liking it. I can make it Friday (6:40 p.m. PT start) or Sunday (1:10 p.m. PT). Anyone else?

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  206. Kevin Says:

    Magic number is the number of Padres wins OR Dodgers losses left to win the division.

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  207. LynchMob Says:

    Hmmm, I’m gonna be in town on Thursday for a wedding on Saturday … I could be talked into a trip downtown … even if we have C-word’d by then …

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  208. LynchMob Says:

    re: 206 … right Kevin … and there’s also another “magic number” … you’ve described the “magic number to win the NL West” … to me, the more critical is the “magic number to get into the playoffs … which at this time is defined as … the number of Padre wins + max(LA losses, Philly losses) …

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  209. LynchMob Says:

    re: 208 … and just to be clear, since LA & Philly are both 82-74, both of the magic numbers are 5 at this time …

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  210. LynchMob Says:

    Here’s a reason to root against Philly … if they drop out (ie. lose enough games to be behind both Padres and Dogs), then even if we tie the Dogs, we’ll be NL West champs without a 1-game playoff … that 1-game playoff is something that’d be HUGE to avoid! I’d rather have the Dogs in the playoffs (as the wild card, of course) than have to do that 1-game play-in game.

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  211. Kevin Says:

    re: 208-209

    Sure, but winning the NL West is the goal. Until that is no longer a possibility, then I don’t really acknowledge the wild card.

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  212. LynchMob Says:

    211 … that’s where we disagree … I think getting into the playoffs is the goal … because that’s step #1 to winning the World Championship … it’s not old-school, but it’s the way things are.

    For example, it comes down to Sunday … we’ve clinch’d the wild card, but not the NL West … do we go with #1 starter? Or save him for game 1 of playoffs? I s’pose this hypothetical also would require knowing the status of home-field advantage …

    I wonder if SA + KT + BB are pondering this yet? Does that get them looking too far ahead? Or would that just be prudent?

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  213. LynchMob Says:

    Our rotation here on out …

    Tues … Woody (vs Carpenter)
    Wed … CYoung (vs AReyes)
    Thu … Jake (at AZ)
    Fri … Hensley (at AZ)
    Sat … Gout-man? Thompson? (at AZ)
    Sun … Woody (at AZ)

    The playoff schedule is at http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/...../ps_06.jsp … the non-WildCard matchup starts Tuesday … so if LA is the WC, Padres would play NL Central champs on Tuesday … if Phily is the WC and Padres the NL West champs, Padres would play Phillies on Wed … if Padres are the WC, they would play Mets on Wed …

    Tuesday will be Jake’s normal rest … but it’d be CY’s turn … who goes #1? Is there any doubt? :-)

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  214. LaMar Says:

    Count me in for at least Sunday. I’m not sure about Friday yet.

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  215. LynchMob Says:

    More from Wikipedia … http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gout

    Famous people who had gout:
    One of the most famous sufferers of gout was Henry VIII. Others include John Calvin, Khubilai Khan, Nostradamus, John Milton, Queen Anne, Isaac Newton, Henry Fielding, Samuel Johnson, Charles V, Pablo Neruda, Alfred Lord Tennyson, George IV, John Hancock, Thomas Jefferson, Karl Marx, William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, Benjamin Disraeli, Kirk Reuter, David Wells, Rubens, Lennart Torstenson, Peter Gomes, Alexander Hamilton, George Mason, Benjamin Franklin, Jared Leto.

    … Kirk Reuter and David Wells on the same list as John Calvin, Isaac Newton and Ben Franklin??? Just bizarre …

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  216. Kevin Says:

    re: 212

    If the Padres were the wild card, they would play the Mets. I wouldn’t want to play them first. Yes, wild cards have often won the World Series, but that’s not the easy way to do it.

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  217. Kevin Says:

    A history of closing:

    http://www.washtimes.com/sport.....-4264r.htm

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  218. Jay Says:

    Nice win. I like Bochy’s moves. Even leaving in Thompson, though I disagree with Piazza on the second fastball. You sneak the one heater by him, then try something else. Two past him is like the old addage, foul me once, shame on you, foul me twice…; anyway, I also like the four out Linebrink move, though I thought he should have double switched (maybe he did). It was by necessity, but that was Linebrink of old. Made Rolen look bad. He would have gone after Pujols, but as Mark O as in 201, it was about that first pitch (which was a strike). He gets that call, different AB.

    Wow. 2 up with 6 left. A tough 6, but man, just have a little fun here, just imagine what it feels like if you are the Dogs tomorrow looking at the scoreboard. Pretend, fantasy like, we have a nice lead tomorrow, you now face the Rox basically 2.5 back. You lose, you are 3 down with 5 left, very, very tight. A little pressure, no? All those dramatic jacks and still cannot make up ground. Frustrating? Well, we’ll see. We have the cornered, rapid Red Birds trying to peck our eyes out Hitchcock style, so let’s keep playing tough.

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  219. Axion Says:

    I say if we win 4 of the next 6, we clinch.

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  220. Coronado Mike Says:

    Profound Axion…profound!!!

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  221. Nick G. Says:

    I feel good today. Nice win last night.

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