Author Archives rss

No Offense in Houston, Plenty in San Antonio

I missed Thursday night’s loss in Houston. Apparently so did the Padres. My excuse was day job and taxes. Theirs was… Dustin Moseley on the mound? The Padres have been shut out in all three of his starts this season. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Moseley is just the third pitcher since 1972 to [...]

Debuts, Artistic Mastery, and the Coming Thing

We watched Mat Latos’ season debut from Section 301. The stadium scoreboard had his fastball at 92-96 mph, and he mostly located his pitches well. Two exceptions came in the fifth inning. First, he got ahead of no. 8 hitter Paul Janish and couldn’t put him away. Then, after opposing starter Edinson Volquez failed to [...]

Wednesday Links (13 Apr 11)

While the Padres have been busy losing winnable games, I’ve been busy doing life stuff. In lieu of actual content, here are some links…

Me, Elsewhere: Nice Backstop

My latest at Baseball Prospectus ($) examines the National League West catchers. You know about Nick Hundley, but Arizona’s Miguel Montero is off to a ridiculous start as well. I love small samples… Also, there is a Dame Diana Rigg reference, for those of you with exquisite taste…

Dali Meets Federman

What the heck happened this weekend? It was a Dali painting wrapped in a Federman novel inside a flaming bag of… well, it was weird…

Farm Report: Sampson Has a Good Hair Day

The station that carries the San Antonio Missions games on radio also features a show called “Down on the Farm Radio.” I was pumped, thinking maybe I could learn more about Padres prospects that way. No such… it’s about actual farms. You know… hog reports, monster lizards, and what not. It’s an old-school country station, [...]

Happy Minor League Opening Day!

While the Padres are enjoying their third day off in the season’s first eight days, their four full-season minor-league affiliates kick off the 2011 schedule on Thursday. Here’s a little something to help you follow along from wherever you may be…

Lemontastic

When we arrived at Petco Park, a little over an hour before first pitch, the Giants were taking batting practice and Heath Bell was signing autographs near the home dugout. Bell signed for 10-15 minutes, with other members of the Padres bullpen joining in as well. Players milled about the field, the grounds crew made [...]

Me, Elsewhere: Contrasting Defensive Styles

My latest look at the NL West over at Baseball Prospectus (freebie) considers the respective defensive approaches (or lack thereof) of the Giants and Dodgers. And I offer a few thoughts on the Padres’ opening weekend series win in St. Louis: Most people don’t expect much from the Padres in 2011. Three games doesn’t change [...]

Pity About the Padres Offense (Non-Ironic Remix)

I jinxed the Padres with the title of Sunday’s article. Because, you know, I have that kind of power. And this is the best use I can find for it. You’d think something of greater consequence might be in order, but no… I’m all about writing headlines that inspire their subject to negate said headlines. [...]