Search results for ‘chase headley

Lines Form on My Face and Hands

I have a strong preference for well-pitched games, but sometimes it’s fun to see your team go off like the Padres did on Monday night against the Mets. I probably appreciate it more because it doesn’t happen often with this club, in this ballpark… although it’s worth noting that the Padres’ two biggest outbursts in [...]

Hundley Rises Up to Challenge of His Rival, Beats Nationals Twice

Friday Clayton Richard was efficient (7 IP, 74 pitches, 52 strikes) in Friday’s 5-3 loss to the Nationals but made a couple of mistakes. The big blow was a three-run homer off the bat of Josh Willingham in the fourth. He absolutely crushed a ball to dead center.

I’d Like to Be You for a Day

What’s up with Jerry Hairston Jr.? The guy is hitting .225/.268/.271 with zero homers in 141 PA when the Cardinals come to town. Next thing you know, he’s got back-to-back game-winning jacks. I thought the other Hairston did that sort of thing. It’s like he borrowed Scott’s mojo: Jerry: Hey bro, I’m kind of sucking [...]

Me, Elsewhere: Examining the Padres’ Hot Start

My latest at Hardball Times is all about the Friars, who continue to defy expectations by playing well and leading the National League West in late May. Here’s a little snippet from the section on Chase Headley: If nothing else, Headley has enjoyed greater success in 2010 than his predecessor, Kevin Kouzmanoff. Beyond the fact [...]

But It Was a Fast Three Hours and Forty-Eight Minutes

The Padres finally beat the Dodgers on Wednesday night. Where did those 10 runs come from, anyway? That’s as many as the Padres had scored over their previous four games combined. To the bullet points: Jon Garland is amazing. How do you use 117 pitches in 5 innings and make a regulation game last 3 [...]

Padres Take Two in Houston, Give Third Away

One of the hazards of watching a lot of games at Petco Park is a skewed sense of how hard a ball needs to be struck to leave the yard. I caught a few innings of a Mets-Phillies game on TV the other night, and baseballs were flying out of Citizens Bank Park. I had [...]

Me, Elsewhere: A Different Look at the Minors

My latest at Hardball Times focuses on an aspect of minor-league baseball that not everyone realizes exists, namely the fact that pitchers sit in the stands charting pitches. As I note, it’s a little different from what you find at the big-league level: Imagine yourself at Dodger Stadium, catching a Dodgers-Giants game with 40,000 of [...]

Tuesday’s Win Deserves a Better Title Than This

The first seven innings of Tuesday night’s comeback victory over the Rockies provided an exercise in frustration for the home team and its fans. The Padres put runners on every inning, and got at least one man into scoring position in each of the fourth through seventh innings, yet plated just one run. Colorado starter [...]

April in Review

The first month of the 2010 season certainly didn’t turn out as I’d expected. The Padres finished April with a 15-8 record, 1 1/2 games ahead of second place San Francisco. Whether they can sustain their success over the long haul remains to be seen, but at the very least, they have given fans a [...]

Padres Take Series in Cincinnati

Two out of three in Cincy? Sure, another sweep would have been nice, but I’ll take it. We are perhaps getting spoiled by the early success, no? (Oops, I see my inner Hercule Poirot has escaped again.)