What day is it even? Here, have some links while I’m trying to get my act together…

Current Padres

• Padres Attendance isn’t helped by criticism of fans (Gaslamp Ball). It isn’t helped by anything else, either.
• Padres exhibit patience as fans come around (MLB.com). Attendance has become a hot issue since the Padres started winning, but the truth is, it’s been a concern for a while. People seem to be more willing to forgive fans for not supporting the team in difficult times.
• Fewer Empty Seats May Mean More Runs (Wall Street Journal). Meanwhile, research suggests that the Padres would have about three more wins right now if they’d played in front of a packed house every night at Petco Park. In other news, research seems suspect. [h/t reader LynchMob]
• Hinch to join Padres’ scouting department (Padres.com). Remember when A.J. Hinch and Ramon Hernandez were two promising young catchers in the A’s organization? That seems like a lifetime ago. Maybe Hinch can help the Padres find the next Ben Davis.
• Overthinking It: Friar Men (Baseball Prospectus). Ben Lindbergh likes the Padres bullpen. [h/t reader Didi]
• Why the Padres do not have a bad offense, in sonnet form (Baseball Prospectus). Colin Wyers busts out his poetry chops. [h/t reader Didi]
• Stumbling Through Race, Padres Search For Swagger (New York Times). Did they just use “swagger” in headline? Awesome! Way to give 110 percent. [h/t reader parlo]

Former Padres

• Trevor Hoffman versus Arthur Rhodes (Hardball Times). From David Wade’s article: “Nonetheless, Hoffman will still be considered a far more valuable player than Rhodes and may end up in Cooperstown.” In Hoffman’s defense, he was a far more valuable player than Rhodes.
• On the Beat: Going Out with Class (Baseball Prospectus). Speaking of saves records, this is why I love Trevor Hoffman: “In addition to telling the media that he felt largely responsibilities for the Brewers’ poor season, he also apologized to his teammates in a brief team meeting during the aftermath of save No. 600 in which teammates Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun, and Todd Coffey carried him off the field at Miller Park. Melvin said he got chills listening to Hoffman briefly address his teammates.” [h/t reader LynchMob]
• The tortured life of Eric Show (ESPN). Tom Friend remembers the Padres all-time leader in victories. Show is perhaps best known among non-Padres fans for something he didn’t do. [h/t Baseball-Reference]

Division Rivals

• State of the Giants – September Edition (Bay City Ball). The Giants have an easier schedule the rest of the way than do the Padres. The Giants also will be without the services of Andres Torres for the next two weeks as he recovers from appendicitis. Two weeks? Tim Stauffer was out a lot longer than that when he suffered the same earlier this season. Just sayin’.
• Bad mix: The McCourts and the Dodgers (ESPN). Let’s all say a word of thanks to the Mooreses for doing right by the Padres. [h/t BBTF]
• Dodgers’ 2010 season: One step forward, five steps back (Dodger Thoughts). Jon Weisman reflects on a season of disappointment: “Despite the McCourts, the Dodgers had a contender on paper. But that paper got shredded, much like Ronald Belisario’s visa application.” [h/t reader Didi]
• Arizona Diamondbacks’ Chase Field could become pitchers’ haven with humidor (Arizona Republic). Interesting… [h/t BBTF]
• D-backs target Towers as GM (FOX Sports). This wouldn’t be the first time. I hope it doesn’t happen because — news flash — Kevin Towers is good at what he does. [h/t Gaslamp Ball]
• 16,000 Diamondbacks Fans Killed On Complimentary Rattlesnake Night (The Onion). It is teh funny… [h/t reader Didi]

Minor Leagues

• A short history of the Ventura County Gulls (Hardball Times). It bothers me that there aren’t more pro baseball teams along the California coast. No offense to places like Adelanto and Bakersfield, but I sure wouldn’t mind catching a game or three in Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo…
• Nick Franklin’s Historic Season (FanGraphs). Jaff Decker and Adrian Gonzalez show up on this list… Come to think of it, so does Wily Mo Pena, who is technically a member of the Padres.
• Time-lapse video from the final Beavers game at PGE Park (The Oregonian). This short (2-minute) video provides a nice look at the last hurrah of the late Portland Beavers.
• The Minors in Context: Introduction (FanGraphs). Bryan Smith examines offensive levels in full-season minor leagues.
• Brach Breaks Cal League Saves Record (619 Sports). John Conniff (Mad Friars) pens a guest piece celebrating the work of Brad Brach. As you probably know, I’m not a huge believer in minor-league relievers, but I have a good feeling (for whatever that might be worth) about Brach.

Whatever Else

• Weak Sauce? Secret Sauce’s Predictive Capacity Wanes in Recent Years (Rational Pastime). Numbers, charts, and stuff. [h/t BBTF]
• My curiously long interview with Joe Posnanski (Baseball: Past & Present). Quoth Poz: “I never feel good about anything I write. When it’s over, I just feel like that was the best I can do. Some days, I’ll go back and read it, it’s like, ‘Oh okay, well that wasn’t too bad.’ I never feel too great about what I do.” If you found yourself nodding your head (as I did), congratulations, you’re a writer. [h/t BBTF]
• Diagramming Mark Teahen’s defense (Sox Machine). Beautiful… hilarious… beautarious? [h/t Platoon Advantage]
• Joe Torre: Umpires getting hair triggers (ESPN). Uh, Joe, this has been going on for a while now. [h/t BBTF]
• La Russa says job is getting tougher (St. Louis Post-Dispatch). Torre isn’t the only veteran manager pining for the good ol’ days… or is it the fjords? [h/t BBTF]
• Life, Liberty, and Breaking the Rules (Slate). Bill James, as he often does, offers tasty food for thought: “It is a very American thing, that we don’t believe too much in obeying the rules. We are not a nation of Hall Monitors; we are a nation that tortures Hall Monitors. We are people who push the rules.” James also talks about Babe Ruth, Branch Rickey, and Barry Bonds. Good stuff. [h/t BBTF]
• Rattled in the Clinches: Manager Pie Traynor and the Epic Collapse of the 1938 Pirates (Seamheads). Hey, something with “epic collapse” in the title and no Padres. Sweet! James Forr’s excellent article moves beyond the realm of baseball and connects us to real life as well: “Emotions are contagious. Work for neurotic, pessimistic people and eventually you’ll probably become neurotic and pessimistic, too.” Yeah, I’m sure none of us have ever had that experience.
• 9/10 Best seller UPDATE (Muskat Ramblings). Despite the Brewers’ dismissal of this as a “lousy attempt at a practical joke” it’s actually quite amusing. And no, I didn’t do it.
• Baseball teams as Simpsons characters (Hardball Times). The Padres are represented by someone called Dr. Hibbard. I have no idea who that is, but then, the last time I watched The Simpsons with any regularity, Conan O’Brien was one of the writers. [h/t reader Didi]

Padres go for the sweep this afternoon at that place where something vaguely resembling baseball is played. Rock on…

Tagged as: a.j. hinch, adrian gonzalez, andres torres, arthur rhodes, attendance, babe ruth, barry bonds, bill james, brad brach, branch rickey, california, chase field, eric show, jaff decker, joe-torre, kevin towers, mark teahen, pge park, portland beavers, ramon hernandez, secret sauce, the mccourts, tim stauffer, tony larussa, trevor hoffman, umpires, writing