Search results for ‘adrian gonzalez

Reshaping the Padres: Let’s Make a Deal (or Three)

On Thursday, we examined what the Padres have and what they need. Now we turn to the question of which teams might make good trade partners and then consider some possible scenarios. As of this writing, about half the teams in baseball appear to be in contention. Some will fall of the pace, although it’s [...]

Reshaping the Padres: What Have We Got?

With hopes for 2008 all but gone, I’ve turned my focus to reshaping the Padres so that they can return to the competitive levels we’ve grown accustomed to since the club moved to Petco Park in 2004. I attacked the problem as follows: Take inventory of organizational strengths and weaknesses Identify potential trade partners based [...]

Those Who Snooze Don’t Always Lose

We were walking west along J Street, just past Fire Station 4, when the crowd erupted. Cardinals fans seem to travel with their team, so we assumed that the visiting team had extended its seemingly insurmountable 2-0 lead. I was in a lousy mood before we even got to the ballpark — I forget why, [...]

Falling Off the Bandwagon

We are all products of our environment. The recent environment in San Diego baseball has been one of winning. Since moving downtown for the 2004 season, the Padres have seen unprecedented on-field success. For the first time in franchise history they’ve enjoyed four straight winning seasons. In 2005 and 2006, they reached the post-season in [...]

The Shape of Things to Come

Top of the ninth, two on, one out. Adrian Gonzalez steps to the plate. Braves manager Bobby Cox summons ex-Padre Royce Ring, who promptly hangs a breaking ball. Gonzalez swats it high and deep down the right-field line. He, catcher Brian McCann, and plate umpire Wally Bell all watch as it sails into the Atlanta [...]

Padres Farm Report (5 May 08)

Before we get to Sunday’s games, here’s a brief chat I had with John Conniff, of MadFriars.com, about his impressions from a recent trip to Portland: Ducksnorts: The big names at Portland, of course, are Chase Headley and Matt Antonelli. How do they look so far this year? Conniff: Obviously by the numbers that they [...]

Winning Is Better Than Knitting

Winning is so much more fun than losing, n’est ce pas? Every starter except Jim Edmonds and Chris Young collected at least one hit on Wednesday in the Padres’ 4-2 victory over Philadelphia at Citizens Bank Park. Tadahito Iguchi broke out of a season-long slump with four hits, while Adrian Gonzalez and Kevin Kouzmanoff each [...]

Gee, I Still Don’t Understand Sample Size

The Padres need to go out and get more hitters. I know this is true because I keep hearing it. I also know it’s a complete load of garbage. What they really need is for the hitters they already have to start performing up to their capabilities. Padres Hitters: 2008, 2007, Career     2008 [...]

Monkeys on Roller Skates

Thanks to reader Lance for hooking us up with seats two rows behind the visitors dugout on Wednesday night. First time I’ve been anywhere near that close at Petco Park, and it’s a whole different experience. For a guy like me who lives in nosebleed, just, wow. Also, belated welcome to all the folks at [...]

IGD: Padres @ Diamondbacks (19 Apr 08)

Padres (8-9) vs D’backs (12-4) Chris Young vs Edgar Gonzalez 5:10 p.m. PT Channel 4SD AM 1090, FM 105.7, XM 183 MLB, B-R The Padres need to recall Adrian Gonzalez‘s older brother from Portland and stick him in the lineup for this one. How cool would it be to see two different sets of namesakes [...]