Padres (8-9) vs D’backs (12-4)
Chris Young vs Edgar Gonzalez
5:10 p.m. PT
Channel 4SD
AM 1090, FM 105.7, XM 183
MLB, B-R
The Padres need to recall Adrian Gonzalez‘s older brother from Portland and stick him in the lineup for this one. How cool would it be to see two different sets of namesakes face each other in the same game?
#43@Kevin: Road OPS is less accurate than several other measures of a player’s productivity vis-a-vis his home park. It still shows a sizable gap between Agon and the elite, and it also discounts the fact that many of those players hit in hard away environments. Howard leaves home and plays a lot of games in Shea, Florida, and Atlanta.
Agon controls the strike zone less well than the elite hitters, which would seem to be less affected by his home park. He was never a big walker in the minors, it’s not just that he has to deal with pitchers who can pound the zone in SD. That’s really what holds him back offensively (being a relative term), he gets himself out too often.
It is scary to compare the outfield defense of ’06: Roberts / Cameron / 2 years younder OG with ’08: P-Mac/Hairston/Edmonds/post-surgery OG. Just not fair for Padre pitchers
#48@Coronado Mike: Agreed. They are poor announcers. I was just saying that they were pointing out that Cruz’s stuff is worthless if he cant throw a strike.
I am definitely happy with the upgraded MLB.tv. It runs on my Mac (thank god they fixed that) and it is REALLy nice quality. I connect my 42″ LCD to my computer and its pretty darn close to HD quality.
Ouch… P-Mac just kinda nullified his HR.
Thankfully we have decent options at the minor league level to replace the bench guys we have now. Crabbe and McAnulty seem destined to be out of here by May.
#52@Kelly in SD: If they were hitting it wouldn’t hurt so bad, but only OG is doing his part so far. Hairston’s 673 OPS looks almost Ruthian on this roster.
Nice throw PMAC. He’s awful.
Luis Rodriguez should be brought up to replace Crabbe immediately – he will hit better and has twice the glove.
As a left fielder, P-Mac makes a good DH. Absolutely horrible throw to home – about 15 up the line toward first – so the batter gets second without a play. Bard may have had trouble getting the ball out of his glove, but just a horrible throw.
Man…it hurst to see our bully blow it. I HATE that.. I know it happens, but I got so used to seeing us not doing it.
50: Good call. Snap that wrist as hard as you can and throw it as hard as you can, hope they swing.
Man P-Mac is having a rough inning.
#51@Tom Waits: I’m not saying those numbers are the end of the story, and I’m not saying those numbers say that Gonzalez is even with the other first baseman. I just put them up there. They are true, and they are part of the story.
But I do think that Gonzalez is one of the top 10 or so offensive players in the league. Most people don’t think that, or at least don’t get why someone else would.
If he and Holliday switched parks, I think the perception of each would switch, too.
#57@Kelly in SD: DH ? He hasn’t shown he can hit at this level to justify a DH spot on any mlb roster.
#56@JP: You can bring up Chase, you can bring Rodrigues and you are still one Center Fielder short.
In the meantime another loss goes in the books.
45. There is no solution… obviously.
I just love it when stolen bases directly lead to runs… just like I love it when bunts do the same. Mostly because I loathe the use of spreadsheets and sabremetrics when discussing baseball.
Much like I can’t stand the sound of the snake rattle over the PA at D-backs games..
#56@JP: Ouch are we talking about the same Luis Rodriguez?
Can we trad CFers?
I think that Pmac’s fundamental mistakes tonight will accelerate his departure.
#60@Kevin: I wouldn’t quibble with a rank between 10 and 20 in the NL, but still a significant gap between him and elite. I mean, the difference in OPS+ between the players SDSU mentioned and Agon is less than the difference between Agon and Mike Cameron in 2007.
#62@Field39: Yep. And I’d add that there’s zero guarantee Luis Rodriguez would hit better than Crabbe.
#63@Richard D.: Do you equally hate it when a caught stealing chokes off a rally or an attempted bunt turns into a DP or fails to advance a runner?
Maybe pinchhit for Crabbe at this point?
Is it safe to say, in middle-late April, that the Diamondback are clearly better than the Padres.
#62@Field39: Yeah, center field is still a hole. I was guilty of complaining about Cameron and now I wish for him to again be patrolling center. If Edmonds is truly *done* then I would move Hairston to center and give left to Headley.
#68@Kelly in SD: Would not have been crazy.
#69@JP: I think they were clearly better in March…or December. They have a better roster of ballplayers.
Pinch hit for Crabbe in the 8th maybe ?
I have yet to see a Crabbe at bat that shows me that he has a clue at the plate at this level.
I know P-Mac doesn’t hit enough to be a dh.
P-Mac is like Jack Cust just without some of the power and most of the strikezone judgment. There’s really not much value there.
I thought that ball was going over P-Mac’s head.
I had a thought today while out on my 45 mile ride this morning. Any other GM/owner, with this pitching staff would have brought in a CF and LF who could hit in the off season. Edmunds/Harriston don’t count. In other words, this is the kind of pitching staff that with a good to great offense, could go deep into the playoffs. As the offense is terrible and worse in Petco, I’d be happy with 500.
4.5 back, soon to be 5.5 and a game under 500. Az looks like the real thing.
Adjust your expectations, Padre fan, we are not going anywhere this season and Sandy and KT are to blame.
But once I make the adjustment, I’m still a fan and will go to games. I just won’t expect
#71@Coronado Mike: yeah, I know. Somehow I was in denial.
Kevin Cameron: The strike zone is not your enemy.
I echo PM. Sometime in the last week, I just accepted the Padres will be .500 team – probably a game or two below, with good to great pitching, reasonably good infield play, atrocious outfield play and mediocre (at best hitting).
I’m still a fan, but I realize the team doesn’t have the horses and management is okay with waiting a year for the youngin’s to arrive.
Best case scenario for Padres: Edmonds is injured for 100 games, and other players get those at-bats without the Padres having to bench Edmonds. Although Towers and Black will probably do the right thing, as opposed to when Bochy played Castillo a full season.
#67@Tom Waits: I think it may be a big early for Fielder to be called “elite” yes last year was very good, but I would like to see him repeat it. He wasn’t better than Adrian in ’06 when they were both basically rookies. I was wrong in saying he is up there with them, but I really dont think he is that far behind. Milwaukee is a band box too, along with Philly. You point out that Howard goes to more difficult places on the road, but Pujols plays in hitters parks on the road (Wrigley, Houston, Cincy, Mil, even PNC). But ya Adrian isnt there, but I think he could get there because I dont think he is far behind and I think if he played in Philly or Mil, he would be even closer and I dont think Howard or Fielder would do much better playing in Petco, and most the NL West for that matter.
#79@SDSUBaseball: One thing to throw into the mix, even if A-Gon is not on their level. Howard is 28, and both Howard and Fielder are candidates to not be good in a few seasons if they continue to eat, especially Fielder.
Anyone still have a taste for matt murton in LF?
#76@Tom Waits: Cameron’s control (or lack thereof) will catch up with him this year. It’s probably why he didn’t get that call against the Rockies in that marathon game in his 14th inning appearance. He was all over the place and got bailed out earlier in the inning (14th) when Atkins hit one way out of the strike zone to pop up.
KG has not had a great time fielding the past few nights has he?
Wow our team looks bad
Ooops…yes, it happens to everyone…
#79@SDSUBaseball: Milwaukee’s park factor, since it opened, is basically neutral. No one knows if Fielder will ever repeat his 2007, but he got better from age 22 to 23; Agon stayed the same from ages 24 to 25. But I’ll agree, Agon could get there if he firms up his command of the strike zone. There just aren’t many elite offensive players who walk only 65 times a year, even though that’s a good number.
And the damn breaks
#81@Coronado Mike: No. I want to see Chase up here tomorrow. Might as well get his growing paines out of the way now.
Hey, did anyone see where the wheels ended up when they flew off, or did the sparks from the chassis hitting the pavement blind you?
86: I dont think it was neutral last year was it?
What a waste. Cannot even get three outs. Give Ledezma another day of rest and see if he can duplicate his last effort. He looked good for all five innings on Thursday. Cameron and/or Thatcher need to be demoted on the bullpen pecking order.
Field…he ain’t hitting AAA pitching, what makes you think he is gonna do any better up here? His glove is not better than anything we have up here now and until he can give more with the bat, it is not an upgrade. I love me some Chase, but right now might not be the time.
Unless the Cubs come off of their demands, it is a pointless conversation, but Murton is interesting if we can get him at the right price.
I think the wheels hit that bus full of kids left by road from Wednesday’s implosion.
#89@Tom Waits: I think thats a question for P-Mac, he loosened all the lug nuts.
Can someone remind me that we have had losing records the last two seasons and come back for miracle Mays? Although I know our history, it’s not helping much right now.
Now I know how those other teams have felt when their bullpens can’t hold a lead.
#80@Kevin: Fielder went vegetarian. How long that will last if his OPS stays under 800?
#88@Field39: Eh, as long as we’re playing for the future, keep him down long enough to delay free agency. That’s a few weeks yet.
#78@Kevin: Bruce Bochy’s bumper sticker: You can have my Vinny when you pry him from my cold, dead fingers.
Man, this is depressing. I wasn’t that optimistic about this team to begin with, but I didn’t expect them to look this bad. It’s no time to panic, but I am having a very hard time finding any silver linings.
92: totally agree. Chase proved in in AA, he isnt hitting in AAA, why rush him up, especially when he is learning a new position.
Well, have a nice night boys/girls…bed time for me.
#92@Coronado Mike: My expectations for this season have vanished. That being the case I would like to see Chase and Antonellie take their lumps now, when it isn’t going to cost anything.