I kind of run on autopilot around here sometimes and forget to ask y’all what you want. Let me know if there’s anything specific you’d like me to focus on this spring or whatever. I’m open to suggestions, but if I don’t hear anything, I’ll just assume all is well and keep doing whatever the heck it is I do around here.
Meanwhile, back to our February optimism:
- Jim Edmonds underwent an insane workout regimen this past off-season (hat tip to Coronado Mike). Quoth personal trainer Jim Moss, a member of the Los Angeles County SWAT team:
I told him that just because we’re 38 doesn’t mean we’re over the hill. We’ve got a lot to offer. … Most guys half his age quit, but his motivation level was unbelievable. He’s a special case as far as I’m concerned.
We’ll see whether motivation translates into results. At the very least, he and workout fanatic Trevor Hoffman should get along just fine.
- Speaking of Trevor, he’s fired up and ready to go. He’s even toying with the idea of returning to a windup, something he hasn’t used since at least 1995 (hat tip to Oside Jon).
- We’ve talked about Khalil Greene ad nauseum, but it seems that rumors of his desire to leave San Diego were unfounded. Quoth Greene:
There is nowhere else I’d really rather play than San Diego.
Yeah, that’s kind of unambiguous. Novel that someone went straight to the source to find out what the guy is thinking rather than trying to read between the lines.
- Looks like the Padres will carry 12 pitchers again this year. This puts extra pressure on bench players, who will be asked to do a lot — perhaps too much. So, yeah, talk about Tony Clark seeing time in the outfield probably is legit.
- Speaking of Clark, he’s drawing praise for his attitude. Heh, I almost said “altitude.”
- Paul McAnulty is another guy fighting for a bench job (hat tip to Baseball in Fort Wayne). It’d be nice to see P-Mac get his career in gear — if not in San Diego, then somewhere else. I love his mindset:
I’m not trying to make the team as a pinch-hitter. My goal is to become a starter.
Get me more guys like that, please.
- Meanwhile, the back-end of the rotation remains
a complete messup for grabs. Maybe 12 pitchers isn’t such bad thing. Yeah, I don’t really buy that either. We’re being optimistic, remember? - Continuing the “feel good” theme, Mark Prior threw 31 pitches off a mound on Saturday. According to Corey Brock’s article, Prior “felt pretty comfortable and was able to focus on spots instead of mechanics and arm.”
- Speaking of Prior’s mechanics, Rain Delay tipped us to an interesting breakdown (pun only somewhat intended) of the right-hander’s delivery.
- Wait, we’re not done talking about Prior just yet.
- Darren Balsley talks about his pitchers, including the obligatory “new or improved pitch” items for Justin Germano, Jake Peavy, and Chris Young.
- The Padres were impressed enough with manager Bud Black’s rookie campaign in 2007 that they’re now seeking to lock him up long term.
- This isn’t specifically spring training related, but the MadFriars have chatted with Kevin Goldstein about the Padres’ farm system. Goldstein on the team’s top two prospects, Matt Antonelli and Chase Headley:
I was pretty surprised by both of them, but Antonelli’s overall game was more surprising. Before, I thought he kind of looked like a one-trick pony, you know someone that could just get on base, but this year he took a huge jump to a guy that could play second, get on base, run and smack the ball around the park.
There are people out there that will tell you they always thought Headley would start to hit for power but I don’t think anyone thought he would put together the season that he did.
Good stuff.
Also, we’re doing an informal meetup type thing this Friday at Tony Gwynn Stadium for the SDSU/USD game. Reader Ian C. informs us that you can buy tickets in advance at Qualcomm Stadium Gate E. First pitch is 6 p.m. Friday, so let’s meet at the ticket office at 5:40. See you there!
As far as the Giants are concerned, I think that they had a higher payroll than the Padres in most years even if you subtract Bonds’ contract. I’m curious how their payroll will compare in 2008 … it might still be higher.
Brian Sabean habitually threw his first round draft picks away to sign mediocre veterans, traded his best prospects (in the rare instances that he had any), signed old guys. For every Ellis Burks, there were three Dave Roberts’. They didn’t develop one significant offensive player between 2000 and 2008. Maybe Torrealba. Maybe Fred Lewis. Maybe Bill Mueller. Maybe Pedro Feliz, though he’s always been seen as a disappointment.
He’s done better with pitching, but not by a lot. The 2001 team is largely other teams’ dudes apart from Russ Ortiz. The current crop of Lowry, Cain, Correia, Lincecum, Sanchez, Wilson is probably the best group of homegrown guys in Sabean’s history.
51: Yeah, but they don’t give you more wins for doing it with homegrown guys. Somehow despite all those negatives the Giants won a ton of games. From 1997 to 2004 they AVERAGED 90+ wins.
Sabean’s had as much success as Towers. The fact that Sabean’s now in a downcycle doesn’t mean we can forget our own, the one that last 5 long, long seasons. People make a lot of noise about 4 straight winnings seasons in Petco; the Giants streak was twice as long.
Three years into the Padres’ last rebuilding cycle (2001), I’d have killed for a group of young players that included Cain, Correia, and Lincecum. Our best youngsters were Brian Lawrence and Adam Eaton.
#52 Perhaps the worst Sabean trade outside of the infamous Liriano , Joe Nathan and Bonser deal for A.J Pierszinski debacle was the ridiculous move of young flamethrower Jeremy Accardo for Shea Hillenbrand.
Who is worse at developing young players, the Giants or the Padres? The Padres will have Greene and maybe Headley on offense, Peavy in the rotation (although I guess you could also count Germano). McAnulty might also be on the bench. For the Giants, they might have Ortmeier at 1B and Frandsen at 3B (blech), probably some bench guys, but their pitching staff is stacked with home-grown players. Their rotation, with the exception of Zito, will be all home-grown (Cain, Lincecum, Lowry, Sanchez or Correia) while the bullpen will probably be the same.
It’s a good thing that Sabean has screwed up the Giants so badly — if they developed hitters like they have pitchers the last few seasons the Padres would be in trouble.
54: I think we’re going to start developing more good pitchers pretty soon. But I don’t think I’d complain about the staff that had by far the best ERA in baseball just because it wasn’t home grown. Also, Lincecum is quite a talent but we also got Antonelli, Latos, Leblanc, and C. Hunter out of the same draft so lets wait and see on the recent drafts (which I think we’ve done well).
Also, even though Chris Young and A-Gon were not developed by us, the talent we traded (eaton, otsuka, killian) for them was. Same with getting Heath Bell. I don’t think it matters where we get players as long as we don’t completely overpay for them in free agency.
14 … TW … agree that the blue sky over TGs head in the photo does make it look like ST … and good idea about sending TG an email … but … got a suggestion for an email address? There’s not one listed here … http://goaztecs.cstv.com/school-bio/directory.html … which doesn’t surprise me …
16 … thanks, GY … at least the “53″ part of the mystery is solved … and my last shred of doubt that it’s TG himself on his card is now gone …
56: I guess T Gwynn didn’t quite have a plethora of jersey numbers before settling on 19, LM.