by Geoff Young on Sep 20, 2006
first pitch: 7:05 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4SD
matchup: David Wells (2-4, 4.71 ERA) vs Edgar Gonzalez (1-3, 5.26 ERA)
preview: Padres.com
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In honor of Jake Peavy and David Wells’ drive home to San Diego after Monday night’s loss in Los Angeles:
Bad company
And I won’t deny
Bad Bad company
Till the day I die
Till the day I die
Thanks to LaMar for the tip on that one. And now, regarding my only disappointment in Tuesday night’s win against the Snakes, to the thousands of Padres fans who didn’t make it out to Petco Park to support their team down the stretch, I quote the lyrics of a slightly younger band: “Where the **** are you?”
Blast off, it’s party time. Go Padres!
by Geoff Young on Sep 19, 2006
It’s a tired cliche, but like many of its ilk, one that contains a certain amount of truth: “That was a statement game.” We’ve all heard the phrase thrown about like so many batting practice fastballs. The phrase is intended to convey importance, but more often than not it conveys a lack of imagination on the part of the person who employs it. And yet, as we’ve acknowledged, there is truth in the phrase. Every game makes a statement. Every game tells a story, or part of a story, or part of part of a story, or…
Three games in Southern California over the past two days have made a statement:
In fact, they’ve made the exact same statement: “The season isn’t over yet; better get out there and play some ball.”
by Geoff Young on Sep 19, 2006
first pitch: 7:05 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4SD
matchup: Clay Hensley (9-11, 3.83 ERA) vs Livan Hernandez (12-12, 4.98 ERA)
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Okay, has everyone gotten over that irritating Monday night loss? Good, because we’ve got meaningful games to play still and we can’t be all hung up on that one game. Yeah, it sucks. A lot of things in life suck, and most of them a lot worse than losing a baseball game.
I’ll be out at Petco Park pretty much the entire homestand, so postings will be minimal this week, as will my participation in the IGDs. I’ll try to pop in after the games, but contrary to some rumors that are floating around, I do need to sleep every once in a while. Actually, come to think of it, I believe that is called the off-season.
Anyway, talk it up and enjoy. Go Padres!
by Geoff Young on Sep 19, 2006
A quick refresher course for those who may have forgotten or not cared:
to – used as a function word to indicate movement or an action or condition suggestive of movement toward a place, person, or thing reached
The Padres hit many baseballs to the wall in Monday night’s game against the Dodgers.
over – used as a function word to indicate motion or situation in a position higher than or above another
The Dodgers hit many baseballs over the wall in Monday night’s game against the Padres.
Tough loss. We’re all emotionally spent (see the roughly more than 800 comments from the IGD if you don’t believe me), but it’s just one game in the standings and the Dodgers are mighty fortunate to have come away with a 5-13 record against the Padres this season. We got our split in LA, now it’s time to come home and take care of business against the Diamondbacks and Pirates in the final regular season homestand at Petco Park.
Welcome to the pennant race, folks. Prepare to rock the world.
by Geoff Young on Sep 18, 2006
first pitch: 7:10 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4SD
matchup: Jake Peavy (9-14, 4.17 ERA) vs Brad Penny (16-8, 4.04 ERA)
previews: Padres.com | SI.com
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Brad Penny was an All-Star this year but he hasn’t pitched like one since the break. He owns a 5.81 ERA over 12 second-half starts, and opponents are hitting .305 against the power right-hander. Penny has struggled against the Padres this year, sporting a 9.00 ERA in 15 innings against them. That said, he’s won 16 games so he must be doing something right.
For the Pads, Jake Peavy has a 3.77 ERA in the second half of the season. Perhaps more importantly, he’s cut his homers way down, allowing just 7 in 76 1/3 innings. His run support still isn’t the greatest (his 5-6 record since the All-Star break is worse than Penny’s despite having an ERA that is lower by two full points), but at least he’s a lot closer to “vintage Peavy” than what we saw earlier in the year.
Padres have taken two out of the first three at Chavez Ravine to reclaim the NL West lead. Worst case, they leave LA with a split and just a half game back in the division. But nobody is thinking about a split right now.
Wild card is a nice Plan B, but the division is the real prize. Time to go get it. As we like to say around here, winning starts with beginning.
by Geoff Young on Sep 18, 2006
It was a long time coming, but worth the wait. Not that this is the end, mind you. As the fortune cookie from last night’s Chinese dinner informed me, “Winning starts with beginning.” I don’t really understand it either, but it seems vaguely applicable to the situation and I doubt I’ll get another chance to use it, so there you go.
The Padres, behind six innings of nerve-wracking one-hit ball from Chris Young (he walked five batters) and strong work from the bullpen, defeated the Dodgers, 2-1, Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles to return to first place in the NL West for the first time since August 10. Pinch-hitter Terrmel Sledge singled home pinch-runner Khalil Greene in the top of the ninth against Jonathan Broxton to break the deadlock. Trevor Hoffman sealed the deal in the bottom half with his 39th save of the season and #475 of his career, bringing him to within three of Lee Smith’s all-time career mark.
Unlikely heroes? Yes, there were a few. Russell Branyan, who has been better than advertised since coming to the Pads from Tampa Bay, opened the scoring on Sunday with an opposite-field solo homer off Derek Lowe in the fifth. And although the seemingly invincible Cla Meredith coughed up a solo shot to Russell Martin in the seventh, snapping the rookie reliever’s scoreless innings streak at 34, the guys behind him in the ‘pen had his back.
Scott Linebrink again looked like the pitcher we used to know (Peter’s got some interesting numbers on him), shutting down the Dodgers in the eighth after allowing a lead single to Jeff Kent. And obviously Sledge came through at an opportune time. His seventh RBI of the year just might be his biggest.
Perhaps more important than all this, though, is the fact that the Padres players seem to believe in themselves and are no longer focused on the front-office’s “failure” to make big moves at the trade deadline. This club is beginning to see the possibilities, and as we all know, winning starts with beginning.
First place is a good place to be, but today is another day. Time to begin again.
by Geoff Young on Sep 17, 2006
first pitch: 1:10 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4SD
matchup: Chris Young (10-5, 3.77 ERA) vs Derek Lowe (14-8, 3.77 ERA)
previews: Padres.com | SI.com | ESPN
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I suck at lyrics. I tried real hard to find something appropriate to the occasion but I think I used up all the good ones I know the last two days. Nobody wants to read lyrics from “Shake Hands with Beef” or “Zaz Turned Blue” right about now, so you’ll need to create your own inspiration.
Or you could look back to Saturday night’s contest, when the Padres displayed some serious offense in beating the Dodgers, 11-2. With the victory, the Friars closed to within 1/2 game of first place and maintained their 1 1/2 game lead over Philly in the wild card.
Sunday afternoon’s affair is about as evenly matched as they come. Both pitchers have identical 3.77 ERAs, although Chris Young and Derek Lowe are getting results in radically different ways. Among 85 big-league pitchers who qualify for an ERA title, Young is the most extreme fly ball pitcher in baseball (0.47 GB/FB ratio), and it’s not even close. Lowe, on the other hand, relies almost exclusively on his infielders, serving up four times as many grounders as fly balls.
Young has struggled (5.25 ERA, 11 HR in 48 IP) since the All-Star break but remains tough on the road. Away from Petco Park, he is 6-0, with a 2.69 ERA over 13 starts. Opponents are hitting just .188/.265/.340 in those games.
So go on, shake hands with beef. And go Padres!
by Geoff Young on Sep 16, 2006
first pitch: 7:10 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4SD
matchup: Woody Williams (8-5, 3.79) vs Chad Billingsley (5-3, 3.02)
previews: Padres.com | SI.com | ESPN
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Fight the good fight every moment
Every minute every day
Fight the good fight every moment
It’s your only way
Dodgers take the opener at Chavez Ravine Friday night, 3-1. Greg Maddux battled with rare command issues early but got into a serious groove before long and held the Padres without a hit for 6 2/3 innings. The Padres, for their part, didn’t do themselves any favors by swinging early and often at Maddux’s offerings. Overall, a well-played game, as you would expect from two teams fighting for the division title with fewer than 20 games remaining.
It’s easy now to second-guess David Wells’ decision to go after J. D. Drew rather than Jeff Kent in the fourth, but given Wells’ track record against both hitters, it was the right move. The failure was not one of strategy but of execution. After walking Kent with two outs, Wells tried to get ahead of Drew and left a pitch out over the plate that the latter jumped on and hammered to the wall in center field. Unfortunately, Wells took a while to regroup and get himself out of the inning. By then, the Dodgers held a 2-0 lead that, thanks to Maddux, proved insurmountable.
Saturday it’s the veteran against the rookie. Woody Williams has been solid for the Padres all season, although he’s tailed off somewhat since the All-Star break. Few Dodgers hitters have enjoyed success against Williams over the years. A few notable exceptions include Kent (.340/.466/.681 in 47 AB), Nomar Garciaparra (.292/.320/.583 in 24 AB), and Kenny Lofton (.310/.333/.483 in 29 AB).
On the other side, Chad Billingsley has been very tough in the second half (1.87 ERA over 53 IP) despite spotty command (4.92 BB/9 during that same stretch, 5.60 on the seasons). The Padres would do well to exhibit a more patient approach at the plate against Billingsley than they did in the first game against Maddux. If they can force the youngster out early and get into the weak part of the LA bullpen (i.e., not the fireballing Jonathan Broxton or surgically precise Takashi Saito), the Pads could find themselves a little closer to first place by the end of the evening.
Should be a good one. Talk it up, and go Padres!
by Geoff Young on Sep 15, 2006
first pitch: 7:40 p.m., PT
television: Channel 4SD
matchup: David Wells (2-3, 4.81 ERA) vs Greg Maddux (12-13, 4.38 ERA)
previews: Padres.com | SI.com | ESPN
buy tickets
Bad dreamer, what’s your name
Looks like we’re ridin’ on the same train
Looks as through there’ll be more pain
There’s gonna be a Showdown
And so it begins…
by Geoff Young on Sep 15, 2006
If the Padres hadn’t blown that first game in Cincy, they’d be headed to LA already in first place. Funny how a team that some folks still don’t think can hold on to the wild card isn’t done fighting for the division, eh? And call me crazy, but I actually like heading into this series slightly behind the Dodgers. Any potential for letdown is completely erased.
Them boys are hungry.
Speaking of hungry, how ’bout some links:
- Over at Padres Run Down, Peter Friberg talks about the importance of working counts as the Padres make their run at the playoffs. He also likes the Friars’ chances of reaching 85 wins, which doesn’t sound very ambitious until you realize that this would be an improvement over 2005.
- NL West is still up for grabs (ESPN). Mark Simon breaks down the upcoming series between the Padres and Dodgers. Some great pitching matchups. This promises to be a fascinating weekend.
- Playoff pulse: Scheduling conflict (Yahoo!). Jeff Passan ranks the schedules of playoff contenders headed into the final stretch. Among 15 teams, the Dodgers have the second easiest schedule, while the Padres are middle of the pack. Passan has another piece on the Padres that probably is more useful to folks who don’t know much about the team. He praises the pitching staff, but in a sort of backhanded way.
- RBI Gap (Baseball Musings). David Pinto looks at the biggest gaps between the top two RBI guys on a team since 1900. Would you believe that Sammy Sosa drove in 94 more runs than the man who finished second in 2001?
- Ten Great Pickups by Omar Minaya (Hardball Times). Dave Studeman likes what the Mets GM has done this year, particularly in assembling his spare parts. If the Padres had a better bench, you could probably put Kevin Towers right up there with Minaya.
- Barry Zito breaks down his famous curveball (Contra Costa Times). With all the talk about Zito potentially coming to San Diego as a free agent (I remain skeptical due to what I suspect his price tag might be), here’s an interesting look at his curve ball. Maybe by the time you read this, they’ll have added the photos. [Tip o' the Ducksnorts cap to Baseball Musings.]
Happy Friday, everyone, and go Padres!
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