2008 September

Archive for September 2008

We’ll See You When We See You

Monday, September 29, 2008
by Geoff Young

The season is over. Thank goodness for that. The Padres played brutal baseball for most of 2008, and fans were in a pretty sour mood all year. Unfortunately I let the negativity get to me more than I should have. I suppose it's safe to admit this now, because I no longer feel it's likely to happen, but on multiple occasions throughout the summer, I came within hours of pulling the plug on Ducksnorts for good. My wife talked me down each time, and for that I owe her many thanks. So do you if you enjoy this site at all. Going forward, I'm developing strategies to help me better survive next season and keep me from reaching the point where I dread visiting my own blog. One ...

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Posted in Site News | 22 Comments »

Chatting with Dirk Hayhurst

Friday, September 26, 2008
by Geoff Young

The Padres selected right-hander Dirk Hayhurst in the eighth round of the 2003 draft out of Kent State University. Before Hayhurst made his big-league debut earlier this September, he was known by many fans for his off-beat and sometimes poignant stories of life in the minors. I recently had the opportunity to "talk" with Dirk via email. He graciously responded to my questions mere hours after being treated rudely by the Dodgers at Chavez Ravine. Big thanks to Dirk for taking time out of his busy schedule to chat with us and to represent with class even in defeat. Ducksnorts: You've worked as both a starter and reliever throughout your career. What are the differences in terms of preparation? Which do you prefer, and why? Hayhurst: Actually, I ...

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Posted in Interviews | 9 Comments »

Padres tickets Chargers tickets Sports tickets

It Could Be Worse; Just Ask the Mariners

Thursday, September 25, 2008
by Geoff Young

Bullet points this morning: I've got a new piece up at Baseball Digest Daily that talks about the challenges facing the Seattle Mariners this off-season. Here in San Diego, the Padres have their work cut out for them as they attempt to rebuild, but there's something to be said for not owing Jarrod Washburn, Miguel Batista, and Carlos Silva a combined $30.35 million next year. One idea I have for the Ducksnorts 2009 Baseball Annual is a quick survey of the Padres' last 10 drafts. I'm thinking of something along the lines of what Scott Lucas has done at Ranger Rundown, with maybe a little more commentary. ...

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Posted in 2009 Annual, Notes and Links | 5 Comments »

Faulty Radar, and Performance by Position

Wednesday, September 24, 2008
by Geoff Young

I've got a few things on my mind this morning. First off, I'm reorganizing the categories of this here blog, trying to put some of those information architecture skills I learned at my last job to use. Among other things, I'm discovering that it's a lot harder to organize your own stuff than someone else's. Anyway, in the process of doing this, I've rediscovered a few ancient posts. One of them (pardon the ugly tables) discusses the limitations in using statistics to evaluate prospects. I'm thinking of Matt Antonelli and the fact that he's fallen off a few radar screens because of his poor showing at Portland this year. Not that Antonelli is the same type of player, but I wonder how many folks had given ...

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Posted in Research | 4 Comments »

In This Town, the Hitting Coach Wears a Red Shirt

Tuesday, September 23, 2008
by Geoff Young

According to Tom Krasovic at the U-T, Wally Joyner has resigned as hitting coach [h/t Sacrifice Bunt] of the San Diego Padres. In lieu of an explanation, Joyner offers this curious quote: I came to the job hoping to put my experience and ideas to good use in teaching and coaching the Padres' hitters, but it has become obvious to me in the past few months that the organization's approach is different from mine. First off, I suspect the approach is less of a problem right now than the results. Second, although the results haven't been great, they haven't ...

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Posted in Baseball | 16 Comments »

Blog World and New Media Expo 2008 Recap

Monday, September 22, 2008
by Geoff Young

We drove to Vegas on Thursday afternoon. Neko Case, Silverchair, Interpol, and Thievery Corporation accompanied us on our journey. Not literally, of course; our car isn't that big. On Friday we rode the monorail all over the Strip, gawking at the utter freakishness that is Sin City. This place always makes me feel lonely, although it's more bearable now than when I was younger and had difficulty coping with loneliness. That evening we saw Tony Bennett perform at the Hilton, where we were staying. The man is 82 years old, but as a performer he's still at the top of his game. His band swung like nobody's business (drummer Harold Jones played with Count Basie in the late '60s), and Bennett's voice remains remarkably crisp ...

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Posted in Baseball | 5 Comments »

All-Time Padres Team

Friday, September 19, 2008
by Geoff Young

Last week I mentioned an all-time Padres team that I've been assembling. This wasn't just an intellectual exercise. Our friends at Seamheads are running a simulation league this off-season with the best players from each big-league franchise, and they invited me to submit a 40-man roster for the Padres. Most of the choices were fairly obvious (I'd already ranked the best players by position in the Ducksnorts 2008 Baseball Annual), but some presented a challenge. Usually it came down to questions of longevity versus effectiveness. For example, Luis Salazar spent a lot more time playing third base in San Diego than Gary Sheffield did, but only one of those guys will help you win baseball games. I tried to stick with players who ...

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Posted in Baseball | 6 Comments »