I have a strong preference for well-pitched games, but sometimes it’s fun to see your team go off like the Padres did on Monday night against the Mets. I probably appreciate it more because it doesn’t happen often with this club, in this ballpark… although it’s worth noting that the Padres’ two biggest outbursts in 2010 have come at home.
It was like one of those weird dreams. Every time I looked up, the Padres had the bases loaded and nobody out, with Luis Durango at the plate. That exact configuration occurred three times. What I’m trying to say is, I need to look up more often.
In the second, after Durango popped weakly to shallow right and Kevin Correia struck out, Jerry Hairston Jr. stepped to the plate. There was an obnoxious Mets fan behind us. I had no doubt that the Padres would fail to score despite their advantageous situation and we would be subjected to “clever” commentary for much of the evening.
Then Hairston knocked an 0-1 pitch from Hisanori Takahashi off the second-deck facade of the Western Metal Supply Co. building. Dude kept chirping for a while but left after a few innings, when it became clear that his team didn’t have it.
I enjoyed watching the Padres respond to each of the Mets’ attempts to turn this one back into a game. Holding a 6-1 advantage in the fifth, Correia coughed up three runs. No problem… the Padres came back to score four (two on bases-loaded walks, but still).
Next inning, Correia surrendered a two-run homer to Rod Barajas on an 0-2 pitch. The Padres answered with six of their own. Sure, the Mets scored five runs in two innings, but the Padres scored twice that number.
Random observations:
- Six Padres collected two or more hits.
- Each of the #3 through #6 hitters (Adrian Gonzalez, Chase Headley, Nick Hundley, Chris Denorfia) reached base four times. They combined to go 12-for-20 with two doubles, a homer, and four walks.
- Hairston and Hundley are out of control. Hundley now leads the team in BA, SLG, OPS, and OPS+.
- Granted, we’re looking at this immediately after the team’s highest run total of the season, but check out the Padres offensive home/road splits through May:
G R/G BA OBP SLG Home 28 4.39 .251 .339 .361 Road 23 4.30 .244 .310 .371
My time is up. You people are lovely; don’t ever change… unless the stench becomes too much, in which case, do everyone a favor and put on some clean clothes.
Nice to see the Pads break out the bats, once in a while.
But in the long run it’s the pitching that will carry them (or not).
June 1st=1st Place!
Like a long day at the beach, can we make it last til July?
Think June is our toughest month. East Coast trip, Phi, NYM, Tor, and, gulp, TB.
Dodgers have a tough month too: Cards, Red Sox, Yankees among others.
Should be fun.
The Hundley/Yorvit tandem has been unexpectedly nice. Perhaps it is just some randomness and it will fade away later, but getting great production. And the two seem to like each other, at least supporting each other and not jealous of the other’s production. At least that is what the broadcasters suggested, showing Hundley going to congratulate Yorvit in the dugout immediately after gunning a guy down.
And glad to see Hundley’s numbers come up. For awhile now, whenever I see him in the box, I have this feeling he could just jack one out. Then I remind myself his OPS is in the high 600s. Now, his OPS is supporting that optimism.
How awesome is Hundley lately? And it was grand to see Durango’s first MLB RBI last night.
They scored 18 and you like it, eh Alice?
I was there too, and there was an obnoxious Met fan down the aisle who stayed all the way through to the fireworks, motorboat mouth going the whole time. However, I *think* the ones who got taken away in handcuffs on the other side of us were actually obnoxious Padre fans. It was hard to tell–they were loud, but largely incoherent.
The guy who started the wave was one section away from us, and I gotta give him props, because (a) he worked his butt off for a long time to get that rolling, and (b) once it started, it was probably the longest lasting wave I’ve ever seen (not that I was looking forward to ever seeing the wave again).
As for pitching duels vs. blowouts and the viewer quality experience: We’ve been to two games so far this year. The first was May 16th, when the Dodgers beat SD 1-0 in a game that featured a total of 6 hits. We had seats that were out in left field. I concluded then that pitcher’s duels aren’t so much fun from far away.
Last night’s game we had great seats, 6 rows up from 3rd base, and the level of involvement pitch-to-pitch was such that I think a close game would’ve been a lot more engaging.
Then again, either is good when your team wins, less so when they lose. That might have something to do with it as well, ya think?
I’m actually glad we’re playing Tampa Bay in Tampa Bay. Have you guys seen their road record? That’s just crazy!