Fun win Tuesday night (box score). They’re all fun, though, aren’t they? Justin Germano wasn’t brilliant, but he didn’t have to be because the offense came through against defending Cy Young award winner Brandon Webb.
Elsewhere in reality, I’ve started writing for Ballhype. My first article — “Barry Zito Is the New Mike Hampton” — is available for you perusal. Check it out when you have a moment, and “hype it up” if you deem it worthy. (You can “hype up” Ducksnorts articles, too, using that little doohickey at the end of each post. Not that I’m begging, but okay, I’m begging. Anyway…
Again.
Germano just had to keep the Padres in the game, which he did. The home team then took advantage of Webb’s wildness and indecision on a Kevin Kouzmanoff bunt (coupled with a questionable call by first-base umpire Lance Barksdale) to score four runs in the sixth and take command.
You know what else was nice? A 1-2-3 ninth from Trevor Hoffman. Haven’t seen one of those in a while (August 4, at home against the Giants, although he didn’t get a save in that one; last 1-2-3 save came on July 24 — over a month ago — at Coors Field of all places).
I like that Hoffman breezed through ninth a night after struggling. And I like that he got the final two outs against Arizona’s two best hitters.
But Hoffman is toast, right? Or wait, I think it is Michael Barrett’s fault. What is Barrett’s fault? I have no clue, I just repeat what I’m told.
Speaking of non sequiturs, here’s something “they” never tell you: The Padres have the second best home run differential in the National League.
| Team | HR | Opp HR | Dif |
|---|---|---|---|
| Statistics are courtesy of ESPN and are through games of August 28, 2007. | |||
| Milwaukee | 180 | 136 | 44 |
| San Diego | 131 | 90 | 41 |
| Florida | 167 | 137 | 30 |
| Cincinnati | 177 | 156 | 21 |
| Atlanta | 146 | 134 | 12 |
| San Francisco | 108 | 100 | 8 |
| NY Mets | 137 | 134 | 3 |
| Philadelphia | 166 | 165 | 1 |
| Arizona | 139 | 143 | -4 |
| Colorado | 128 | 133 | -5 |
| Pittsburgh | 126 | 134 | -8 |
| St. Louis | 118 | 127 | -9 |
| LA Dodgers | 96 | 106 | -10 |
| Chicago Cubs | 104 | 139 | -35 |
| Houston | 132 | 167 | -35 |
| Washington | 96 | 146 | -50 |
It would be nice if “they” told you stuff like this, but they don’t, so I do. Hey, as long as it gets out there somehow…
by Peter Friberg
You will not see all the notable performances from the night before, but you will see the notable performances from those who are actually prospects. – Original preamble for those wondering why I select the performances I do…
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
AAA
Michael Barrett: 3 AB, 0 R, 0 H, 0 RBI; SO – rehab
AA
Midland 6, San Antonio 5 (11 innings)
Matt Antonelli: 6 AB, 0 R, 2 H, 2 RBI; 2B, 3 SO
Chase Headley: 5 AB, 0 R, 0 H, 0 RBI; BB, SO
High-A
Craig Cooper: 6 AB, 3 R, 4 H, 7 RBI; 3B, 2 HR
Kyle Blanks: 5 AB, 1 R, 2 H, 1 RBI; HR, BB, SO
Jose Lobaton: 5 AB, 4 R, 4 H, 3 RBI; 2 2B, 2 HR
Low-A
Game 1: West Michigan 7, Fort Wayne 6
Eric Sogard: 4 AB, 0 R, 2 H, 4 RBI; 2B, CS
Game 2: West Michigan 4, Fort Wayne 1
Cedric Hunter: 3 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 1 RBI; HR
Short Season-A
Danny Payne: 5 AB, 1 R, 2 H, 0 RBI; 2B, 2 SO
Rookie
No significant performances…
Commentary:
Cedric is on a bit of a tear… His August numbers are .333/.411/.484…
Thanks, Peter. The Padres look to reclaim a share of first place on Wednesday. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. PT. Assume the rest to be obvious…
92 Comments
Any idea who starts Friday?
#1
The U-T says Young.
re 2: Young pitches Thursday according to the UT and every other source I can find:
The Padres have yet to announce which pitcher will start Friday for Clay Hensley, who was optioned to Triple-A Portland. General Manager Kevin Towers said the candidates are left-hander Wil Ledezma and minor leaguers.
Nice to see Barrett working his magic losing mojo in Portland…
Trevor looked better, he still didn’t have his usual control but at least he wasn’t leaving so many pitches high in the zone.
Arizona has to be a little worried; I’m sure they were counting last night as an automatic win. Now with Maddux and CY they have to be worried about a sweep.
Please no Ledezma on Fri, I would rather see Cassel
#3
You’re correct, I brain-farted (typed one thing while thinking another).
5: what about giving Geer a shot on Friday? Taking a chance, but more upside.
Found a note on the UT board that the pre game show yesterday talked about the Friday start with KT/Depo/Fuson discussing the call up of either Greer or LeBlanc.
I think LeBlanc is the better prospect, but he would be working on 3 days rest…..bad idea. Greer is due to pitch tonight(I think tonight at least) so we might have a better idea some time soon.
I would imagien they would go with Geer over LeBlanc just because he has spent more time in AA. The Dodgers have also had a little bit more sucsess against lefties (.765 OPS) than against righties (.722 OPS).
Geoff- Nitpicking here — Zito article, end of second paragraph: “in an extremely vote”?
Hey Peter or John do you know Ayala has not made a start in a while?
On the one hand, I’m happy the Padres are 1 game away from reclaiming first place, or a share of it at least.
On the other hand, I’m a little sad it’s happening right as I’m starting to find a little more time for things like baseball after a month of insane travel/moving/job-switching. I look like the biggest fair-weather fan of them all!
That home run differential chart is very interesting. It inspired me to check out the Padres’ “Beane Count”, and surprise surprise, the Padres are first in the NL:
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/beanecount
(The Beane Count is derived by summing a team’s ranks in home runs hit, walks drawn, home runs allowed, and walks allowed.)
Re: 12 dont worry there is plenty of room on the Padre band wagon.
#10: Thanks, Brian. A word inadvertently got dropped in one of the revisions. It’s fixed now.
#11: Not sure Ayala’s current status, but he was on the DL with a “strained bicep” earlier this month:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/stories/MYSA080707.MissionsGameReport.en.cc02d54.html
RE: 16 ahh thanks GY
15 … GY, another nit in the Ballhype article … it says that Zito’s most comp pitcher is Zito …
I didn’t have a chance to mention it during last night’s game, but I think that safe call at first on the throw by Webb was the right call. I noticed that Bobby Meacham immediately threw a “safe” sign when the throw was made and he was staring right at the bag. It was an immediate reaction, like he could see that his foot was not touching the bag when the throw got there.
Missed all of last nite’s game due to a concert (a little indy band called Mae if anyone is interested).
Seems like I missed a good one. I, like most people, assumed that if the D’backs were to be automatically given one game this series, it was last nite.
I’m looking forward to seeing Maddux toe the rubber tonite. It’s a huge game and he’s been pitching very well recently. Glad to see that some of our offense (Adrian, Khalil, Kouz) is picking up those that are struggling a bit (OG, Blum (HR not-withstanding)).
Oh, and if Micah Owings hits a jack tonite, we need to bring in Brocail to drill him in the ribs.
20: Phantom, indie? Mae is on Capitol Records, U.S. home of the Beatles and Beach Boys, so …
I missed Peavy on Monday to see Wilco at the OAT.
A fun game for everyone: Pick who you think is the better prospect and tell me who they are if you can.
Player A: 23 years old, pitched in A, AA and AAA almost equally
146IP, 91H, 50BB, 163K, 6HR allowed
Player B: 20 years old, pitched in A and AA equally
148IP, 114H, 54BB, 164K, 14HR allowed
Shamelessly stolen from GLB, but for good measure:
Scott Linebrink is NOT making any friends in Milwaukee. Liney has taken the loss in relief two games in a row now.
His numbers since joining the Brew Crew are ugly:
“The only reason the Padres made Linebrink available was because he was pitching poorly, and he has fared no better with the Brewers. The veteran right-hander has a 6.10 earned run average in 11 outings this month and has allowed 11 hits, three walks and six earned runs in 4 2/3 innings (11.56 ERA) over his last five appearances.”
Re: 22 your a game behind on both pitchers, also Inman did not pitch equally in A and AA.
Re: 23 man KT knows exactly when to trade BP guys.
23: That’s one of those things you both love and hate to read. Nice to know that your FO made a good choice in trading him away, but awful for Liney who I really do think is a great guy.
20.
I really liked “Destination Beautiful” but I thought “The Everglow” was mediocre at best. That dudes voice is a little annoying at times.
21.
I didn’t know they were on Capital now but they were on Tooth and Nail for a long time.
Imaging that…
Barrett goes to the DL… you guys go 10-6 and are sitting only a game out of first. How shocking. I told you…
Meanwhile, I’m rooting for you guys and hope you take the division. I consider Greg Maddux the greatest baseball player of the last 30 years. I hope you win tonight and would love to see Maddux in the playoffs.
re 24: Wasn’t meant to be an exact comparison…I guess 78IP in A ball and 68 in AA isn’t even close to equally, right?
Re: 28 Ahh the Barrett conspiracy returns.
21: I think he means like indie rock, not that they are on an indie label. I have been dying to see those guys though. Were they any good live?
Re: 29 I thought you meant more performance wise not IP wise. Your right he made 13 stars in A and 12 in AA so its about equal.
27: I thought the Everglow was alot better. I hear you on his voice though.
I really think we have to either give Cassel (only because he pitched well cleaning up) a chance on the start or go with Geer. We need to put someone in that will at least give us a chance to win, not just let it be a throw away game like it has been when Stauffer or Ledezma start
28.
Ah I knew it was only a matter of time. Yeah this streak is all because Barrett’s on the DL and has absolutely nothing to do with Milton Bradley! Good call! You are really on to something!
All right, Steve or Mark, you’re going to have to give this one to me. I knew B was Inman, but I can’t place A.
Re: 35 Barrets dark loosing magic has only a 100 mile raddius so he cant effect Milton while he is portland.
I think the Padres should give Justin Hampson a shot to start, he has very decent numbers as a starter in AAA Colorado Springs and has primarily been a starter throughout his career. Ledesma and Stauffer are not cutting it!!
34:
As Herm Edwards so eloquently put it, “You play to win the game”. The object of baseball isn’t to have the most VORP or the most naturally talented guy at each position. The object is to win as a team.
You guys win a lot more games when Barrett’s not starting. It’s been true all year long and the evidence is overwhelming. Is he the singular cause of wins and losses? No, of course not, and you’ll ignore that I wrote that. However, does he have a significant influence on wins and losses? Yes. He’s an idiot… and you can’t have that at the catcher position.
It will be ‘correlation, not causation’ in your head… that your team’s current run happened with Barrett on the DL. I know better.
Just stopping by because the Barrett thing cracks me up. It’s beautiful to see you guys play like the pre-Barrett first place team you were… with Barrett gone. Like clockwork. Once more, I wish your team well and hope to see Maddux in the playoffs.
Dodgers claimed pitcher Esteban Loaiza off waivers from the Oakland Athletics today.
I wonder if Wells will start on Fri after all.
The first guy is the Yankees savior Ian Kennedy. For the record I think Inman is a better prospect and it isn’t even close given the difference in age and to a lesser extent stuff(Inman works in the low 90’s, Kennedy around 87-88)
I just find it interesting that Kennedy is a guy the Yankees can build around, while Inman’s upside is a #4 starter.
21: Singularity is their first disc on Capitol. They were on Tooth and Nail for Destination Beautiful, the B-Sides disc, and The Everglow. I’d still consider them relatively indie.
27: Of all four of their CDs, The Everglow is by far my favorite. I’m still spending some time with Singularity and getting to know it, but there are some really fantastic songs on The Everglow. The transition between So Far Away and Someone Else’s Arms is probably the best segue between songs I’ve ever heard in my life.
31: I saw them at Chain Reaction in Anaheim last nite (by far the most intimate venue I’ve ever seen them play). Prior to that, I’ve seen them at Soma (years ago, when they opened for someone else), UCSD, The Glass House in Pomona, Cal Poly Pomona, and the House of Blues in downtown SD (incidentally, we won their Meet & Greet and hung out with the band for a long time that nite. They hate Yellowcard (after touring with them) and only published the B-sides album as a way to hasten their departure from Tooth and Nail. Also, my fiance and I told them we were going to use The Sun and the Moon for our first dance at our wedding this year, which was pretty rad. Last nite, as we were waiting to get in, Rob walked by (the keyboardist). He remembered us from the Meet & Greet and was absolutely tickeld to death when we gave him an invitation to our wedding).
They were good last nite, but their sound technicians were having a rough nite. All of their old stuff sounded fine, but they couldn’t get the sound levels right for anything off of Singularity. This resulted in Dave’s mic being up WAAAAY too loud, as well as his guitar and the other guitar. Also, some of Rob’s higher notes on the keyboard were just piercing.
I fully recommend seeing them if you ever get the chance. They’re very solid live, and they’re a great group of guys. We’ve got the set list from almost every shown we’ve seen by them, and they’re always hanging out after shows. Last nite their encore was Sun and Someone Else’s Arms (which was crazy to see played to a bunch of people that knew it by heart).
If I had to rank their albums, it would probably be something like this:
1) The Everglow
2) Destination Beautiful
3) Singularity
4) B-Sides
Destination Beautiful has some of the best song-writing they’ve done, but they’ve progressed a bunch musically through the other discs.
40: Ah, that’s right. I checked Chamberlain and Hughes, but forgot about Kennedy. It seems like prospect gurus (Keith Law, Kevin Goldstein at least) have repeatedly pegged Kennedy as a 3 or 4 guy, so they’re still not buying into the hype.
38: So you’re arguing that there is causation? That Barrett’s presence in the lineup kept Milton Bradley unhealthy, and that if he were still around and healthy that Bradley wouldn’t be hitting home runs like this? I mean, I know the guy was hurting us because he wasn’t hitting at all, so I can buy we picked up a game or two by having Bard’s bat in the lineup instead of his. But to attribute the fortunes of everyone else on the team to Barrett is just too bizarre and gives way too much credit to one player.
Re: 42 Bad News Cubs has linked Barret to the Hindenburg disaster and Kennedy Assassination, and is currently working on a theory that he was the one that hid the WMD’s in Iraq.
41: We just ran a CD review of the new one and it said “Capitol,” so I must admit my relative Mae ignorance. Although, my wife and I had our first dance to a song by a Tooth & Nail band — Starflyer 59, the label’s longest-running act (14 years, I think).
RE Liney – Can’t be. You need proven veterans to win a division. Although Wells made Proven veteran hound Phil Nevin look good, if 10 baserunners in 5 innings is good.
#42: Ben, the way this works is that you reach a conclusion and then find evidence to support it.
41.
Yeah Chain Reaction is my favorite socal venue by far. The best shows of my life were almost all there. That’s actually where I saw Mae maybe 4 years ago. I had never heard of them before and they opened up for someone like the RX Bandits or something (I’m a little foggy). I used to go to the chain a few times a month when I was younger and far more dedicated. I had no clue they even had an album after Everglow but I’ll check it out.
44: I must say that I’m happy they left Tooth and Nail. I didn’t enjoy the implications that came with being a fan of a band on that label. Also, Capitol should afford them bigger opprotunities and give them greater exposure and credibility (their show last nite showed some obvious production elements that had been hitherto absent).
46: I was pretty impressed with Chain Reaction. It featured a bizarre layout, which I don’t think helped accoustics, but it was still a nice evening.
As for the theory that Barrett’s absence is making the team better, this guy is clearly holding a massive grudge. Bradley has largely improved the team, nobody else has.
47.
I totally agree with you. Tooth and Nail has or has had so many bands that I freaking love and it’s really damn annoying for me.
48.
Do they still have t shirts all over the walls?
Has there been any news on Morgan Ensberg lately? I find it kind of odd that he has not made an appearance in the last 3 series (including AZ). Not that I want him starting over Kouz, but I thought he would have pinch hit somewhere during our east coast trip. Perhaps Bud Black is doing his best Kevin Cameron move with him.
50: Yep
51: I’ve wondered the same thing. That guy is completely MIA. Is he hurt? If he is, why isn’t he on the DL? I thought he was a better candidate to PH last nite than Macowiak, but then he got HPB, so I shut up.
Macowiak has very good numbers against Webb, plus a strike out in that situation is the worst possible result.
48: Chain Reaction is a fun place. The sound is horrible though, it doesnt matter if you bring your own tech or not. The layout is odd because it was a (mexican?) resturaunt at one point, then it turned into “Public Storage” (there is still a big PS on the florr i think). It seems like they are slowly making the place bigger and more open. Where the merch tables are now used be closed off and it was the “kitchen” (basically 3 couches for the band members and a bunch of old kitchen supplies). Having both performed there and seen probably 50 shows there, the place just has a special ambience about it. I have seen alot of bands pass through there from Papa Roach to Thrice to Fall Out Boy to Rise Against.
50: I dont think those t-shirts are ever coming down.
As far as Barrett is concerned, why did the 2004 Cubs go 89-73 with Barrett behind the plate? Did he subsequently get dumber? Do you think that maybe part of the reason the Cubs are playing better is that Jason Kendall is hitting .308 with a .398 OBP as a Cub, while Barrett was struggling with a .256/.307?
I mean, maybe the guy has been a knucklehead at times with the Cubs, and he is certainly as bad on defense as advertised (especially passed balls), but he’s been a model citizen with the Padres, and I’m a little tired of folks from outside of San Diego trying to tell me how to feel about a guy on my team (also see Bradley, M.).
Enjoy first place in the Central, and hopefully we’ll settle things in the playoffs!
52: Mackowiak was definitely the right call there because Webb is much worse against lefties. The obvious situation for Ensberg was in the 8th when the D-Backs brought in the LOOGY to face Sledge. He must be hurt, but I haven’t heard anything at all about him.
I get the feeling that “the lefthander” may have gotten a visit from the FO about the playing time distribution at 3B and has possibly over reacted to that
52, 56: Um this is a blog about the band Mae and an Anaheim rock club. Please stay on topic.
Also, has anyone noticed Pete LaForest’s tidy .360/.467/.520 in limited duty? I haven’t seen him play: how does his defense compare to Bard’s? Maybe he should be starting more often?
Re: Inman vs. Kennedy
That’s where scouts come in to play.
How about this one:
Short Season (as 21 yr old): .272/.384/.456 in 169 AB
Low-A (at 22): .280/.367/.469 in 493 AB
Hi-A (at 23): .304/.374/.514 in 490 AB
AA (at 24): .297/.386/.647 in 374 AB
AAA (at 24): .270/.362/.604 in 111 AB
vs.
Rookie (at 18): .299/.420/.500 in 164 AB
Low-A (at 19): .292/.382/.455 in 308 AB
Hi-A (at 20): .296/.374/.529 in 450 AB
Who am I comparing?
Is that our own Ben B asking a Chris Young question in Will Carroll’s chat today?
http://www.baseballprospectus.com/chat/chat.php?chatId=338
58: lol. That’s pretty damn funny.
54: That place is definitely laid out in a bizarre fashion. There’s also a place in Corona/Riverside right near the 91 and 15 interchange that’s got a pretty bizarre set up too (although the stage is much bigger). I can’t remember the name of it, but they’ve got all sorts of random crap hanging from the ceiling (like a bike). I once saw one of my old friends’ band, hot like (A) robot, perform there.
Re 60: The second player is Banks, my guess is that the first player will be a college 1B prospect, who is not playing for the Padres — Portland pretty much sucks.
#58: New tagline… “All Mae. All the time.”
62: The Showcase Theatre, I believe?
60: The first one is current Padres 1st baseman Adrian Gonzalez?
62: The Showcase Theatre, they used to have a balcony too, not sure if they still do.
Peter, are you going to let us know who the other player is?
66: Nevermind, I didnt even pay attention to the ages
60: Actually that looks like Kouz now that I look at the ages
Can’t be Kouz as his career average in the minors was 332 (and the ages are wrong). Obviously it’s someone in a big market who gets a ton of publicity. There’s no one on the Red Sox or the Yankees who really fits that description I don’t think, I was thinking maybe Ryan Braun but his minor league numbers were way better.
Re 70: I was thinking Connor Jackson, but he debuted in mlb at 22.
I finally figured it out, after about a dozen searches on thebaseballcube. It’s Ryan Howard, which probably should have been obvious given the high slugging percentages and the old age.
Just about to say that too. Howard and Blanks have similar body types too but Blanks is a lot more athletic. What he left out was Howard’s AAA season in 2005 at age 25 which really showed how good Howard could be. For comparison, here are their stats:
http://thebaseballcube.com/players/H/Ryan-Howard.shtml
http://thebaseballcube.com/players/B/Kyle-Blanks.shtml
Howard getting better every year through the minors is crazy to see…..I think we’ll know a ton more about Blanks potential after next season as it is a much tougher league to hit in and he’ll only be playing as a 21 year old
60 & 66: That’s it.
64: Sorry to hijack your blog. I just thought we could just diversify a bit :-p
As for Blanks, I’m really curious to see what they end up doing with him. It seems that it will be at least 2 years before he’s ML ready, but I really wonder what they’ll decide to do with thim.
#75: No worries, bud; just don’t go all Air Supply and Yanni on us.
Are you sure the 1st player isn’t Jack Cust?
76: lol, if it gets to that point, I, as the inestimable Happy Gilmore once said, “I’d have to kick my own ass.”
I say go for Geer on Friday.
Lost in Love and I don’t know much…
PS – Dodgers/Nats 9-9 in the 9th.
#80: Oh no, you didn’t…
Only for you, GY.
Sorry guys, unlike a lot of you, I’m not at my computer all day (the benefits & disadvantages of outside sales) so I only post when I have a couple minutes between work-stuff to log on and check out what’s happening.
Yes, Ryan Howard & Kyle Blanks were the subject of my comparison (was that proper English?)…
I really think Blanks might make Gonzalez expendable…
83: Wow Peter, that’s quite an endorsement. As one of the resident propsect experts on this site, I’ll certainly defer to your knowledge here. How does Blanks’ defense compare to that of Adrian? Also, how does Blank’s plate discipline compare to Adrian’s?
Re: 83 I agree, Adrian will be at the end of his contract in 2010 and Blanks will be ready to play in the Majors.
It’s awfully nice of the Nationals to wear out the Dodger bullpen like this. I guess it would have been nicer if they had managed to actually win two of these games, but, eh, it’s the Nationals. Beggars can’t be choosers.
Looks like Geer is pitching right now for San Antonio, so scratch that name off of the list of possible Friday starters.
It also appears that Shawn Estes is getting the start tonight for the Beavers, when it would normally be Jack Cassel’s turn in the rotation. Cassel is also not listed as a starter for any of the Beavers’ next five games, but neither is Hensley.
87: I guess that means that we’ll end up with Ledezma or Cassel then…
Geer pitching pretty decently. 6 IP, 4 hits, 2 ER, 0 BB’s, 4 K’s, 0 HR allowed, 1 extra base hit allowed. San Antonio up 3-2.
It would be great to see Cassel get a start or two down the stretch and show some success. The guy fought his was back from a AA demotion last year and was considered a long shot prospect at best to ever contribute at this level.
Got ‘em! Nicccccce…