first pitch: 12:35 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Woody Williams (8-11, 4.72 ERA) vs Matt Cain (2-1, 1.71 ERA) preview: USA Today Avalanche or roadblock I was a snowball in hell Avalanche or roadblock A jailer trapped in his cell Money’s all broke, and food’s going hungry If it wasn’t for disappointment I wouldn’t [...]

first pitch: 7:15 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Brian Lawrence (7-14, 4.74 ERA) vs Noah Lowry (12-12, 3.82 ERA) preview: Padres.com magic number: 15 Dearest Padres of San Diego: Thank you ever so much for scoring three runs in the first inning of our recent base ball match and then refraining from scoring further [...]

first pitch: 7:15 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Adam Eaton (12-7, 5.83 ERA) vs Kevin Correia (2-5, 4.31 ERA) preview: Padres.com magic number: 15 [Note: When I first started working on this, the matchup was supposed to be between Eaton and Jason Schmidt. No such luck, but I thought the comparison between the two [...]

first pitch: 1:10 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Chan Ho Park (12-7, 5.83 ERA) vs Brad Penny (6-9, 3.82 ERA) preview: ESPN | Padres.com magic number: 15 Fun with anagrams: Carhop Hank squares off against Brandy Pen. I don’t know what that means either, but it’s Sunday; you were expecting, perhaps, something more?

first pitch: 1:10 p.m., PT television: FOX matchup: Clay Hensley (0-0, 2.25 ERA) vs Derek Lowe (9-13, 3.77 ERA) preview: Padres.com magic number: 16 No, he’s not Jake Peavy, but Hensley has done a terrific job since being recalled from Portland. After 16 relief appearances for the Pads, the 25-year-old right-hander makes his first big-league [...]

first pitch: 7:40 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Woody Williams (7-11, 4.85 ERA) vs D.J. Houlton (5-8, 5.23 ERA) Hey, welcome to analysis-free Friday. As Rich Campbell points out over at San Diego Spotlight, the Padres’ magic number is at 17. Even the thought of having to face D.J. Houlton again can’t bring me [...]

first pitch: 7:05 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Brian Lawrence (7-14, 4.83 ERA) vs Sunny Kim (4-2, 4.50 ERA) Random Thoughts Nice outing from Adam Eaton Wednesday night. He’s not quite back where he was before the injury, but he’s getting closer all the time. Padres seriously need him to step up down the [...]

first pitch: 7:05 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Adam Eaton (9-3, 3.90 ERA) vs Jeff Francis (12-10, 5.87 ERA) preview: ESPN | Padres.com The Giants are now in second place. Thanks to Jeff Kent‘s heroics for the Dodgers Tuesday night, San Francisco remains 5 back of the Padres, who literally threw away another game [...]

first pitch: 7:05 p.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Chan Ho Park (12-6, 5.79 ERA) vs Aaron Cook (3-1, 3.76 ERA) preview: Padres.com The talk show yahoos are hereby invited to stop asking whether the Padres should be embarrassed to go to the playoffs if they finish the season with a losing record. Here’s the [...]

first pitch: 11:05 a.m., PT television: Channel 4 matchup: Jake Peavy (12-6, 3.01 ERA) vs Doug Davis (9-10, 4.12 ERA) I’m still on the road, probably somewhere between Modesto and Lake Elsinore. Probably whining about the heat. And the smell. And whatever. Are we there yet?