I’m about three-quarters of the way through with my Padres Preview for BTF. Here’s a sneak peak at a player near and dear to our hearts, Khalil Greene:

This time last year, the shortstop job was wide open in San Diego. Greene took control in spring and proved to be one of the stabilizing influences on the ballclub until a freak injury ended his season in early September. Last year in this space I said: “Greene frequently is compared to Rich Aurilia, and if Greene takes the job, he’ll hit about like Aurilia did in his first full season (.266/.319/.407).” Turns out we underestimated Greene’s hitting ability, as he finished up at .273/.349/.446 (including a whopping .294/.337/.647 in 85 at-bats as leadoff hitter). Particularly encouraging was his second half showing. Greene hit .293/.351/.540 after the All-Star break and likely would have won Rookie of the Year honors had he not broken his right index finger on a bad hop grounder with two weeks to play. Here’s a quick comparison between Greene’s first full season and those of a couple other heralded young shortstops:

        Age  PA   BA  OBP  SLG OPS+ WS
Greene   24 554 .273 .349 .446 112  20
Jeter    22 654 .314 .370 .430 101  18
Tejada   23 674 .251 .325 .427  91  20

Defensively Greene doesn’t have spectacular range but he has good instincts and a quick release on his throws. He also turns the double play well and doesn’t panic. Greene was one of the keys to the Padres’ big turnaround in 2004. If he stays healthy, he should build on his rookie season and be a very productive hitter at the bottom of the order, with 20+ homers a real possibility.

In Other News

• Over at Fanstop, Lost Gonzo points to a Peter Gammons article that identifies Tim Stauffer and Paul McAnulty as two rookies to watch this season.
• Alex Sanchez has been released by the Tigers. He’s basically a younger version of Dave Roberts. Makes you wonder why Detroit wasn’t able to get something for him, no?
• Speaking of Roberts, it looks like Ben Johnson might be the one to get the call if the Padres need a short-term replacement in center.
• According to this article at the NC Times, getting Xavier Nady 350+ at-bats continues to be a priority. Quoth Bruce Bochy: “We need to run him out there as much as possible.”
• Minor-league pitchers hope they can stick (NC Times). The Padres are leaning toward a 12-man pitching staff, with Blaine Neal, Steve Sparks, and Randy Williams leading the charge for the last spot. Others, including Joe Dawley, Brian Falkenborg, and Danny Patterson, are considered longshots.
• Baseball America rankings casts doubt on prospects for Padres (U-T). Of course, the brightest prospects have graduated to the big club or moved to Pittsburgh. I also agree that many evaluators are way too down on Tim Stauffer and Matt Bush. With Stauffer, his performance and demeanor suggest greater things; with Bush, we don’t know much beyond the fact that he’s young and a good athlete.
• Great Literature Made Better By Adding Kevin Millar (Surviving Grady). Nothing to do with the Padres, but this is freakin’ hilarious.