sacrifice bunt

Potential Fire Sale FAQ

Friday, November 14, 2008
by Geoff Young

Nothing has happened yet, but all indications are that life is about to get real interesting around these parts. With that in mind, here's a little something to help you through as we move forward into the unknown... Q: What the heck is going on with the Padres? A: Principle owners John and Becky Moores have filed for divorce. Custody of the team will be a part of the proceedings, although as of early October, "no decision regarding the Padres has been made." Some reports suggest that total payroll could plummet to as low as $40 million in 2009. This may or may not be the result of a desire to make the franchise ...

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Posted in Baseball | 24 Comments »

Links for 4 Nov 08

Tuesday, November 4, 2008
by Geoff Young

I have decided, for the first time in 20 years, to participate in a general election. Ordinarily in life I try to stay as far away from politics as possible, but one measure on the California ballot and two political parties have convinced that it's time for me to get off my butt and vote. My presidential candidate has no chance of winning -- in a game between the Red Sox and Yankees, I'm essentially backing the Eugene Emeralds -- but that's okay. The gesture is purely symbolic, and as symbolic gestures go, it's probably better than the one I usually give politicians. (Of course, I'll still deliver that gesture as well -- might as well get my money's worth, right?) Anyway, it would be hypocritical of ...

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Posted in Notes and Links | 35 Comments »

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Links for 28 Oct 08

Tuesday, October 28, 2008
by Geoff Young

Mmm, linkity link links... Padres remain a preferred spot for pitchers staging comebacks (U-T). Mark Mulder, Mark Prior, and Matt Clement all have expressed an interest in pitching for the Padres or, failing that, at least wearing the uniform. Mark Prior Halloweeen Update. Speaking of Prior, Planet Padres caught up with the right-hander at a local pumpkin patch, of all places. Petco Fences Moving In? For those who enjoy the occasional conspiracy theory, Melvin Nieves at Sacrifice Bunt delivers the goods. Padres hope their core of young players ...

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Posted in Notes and Links | 2 Comments »

In This Town, the Hitting Coach Wears a Red Shirt

Tuesday, September 23, 2008
by Geoff Young

According to Tom Krasovic at the U-T, Wally Joyner has resigned as hitting coach [h/t Sacrifice Bunt] of the San Diego Padres. In lieu of an explanation, Joyner offers this curious quote: I came to the job hoping to put my experience and ideas to good use in teaching and coaching the Padres' hitters, but it has become obvious to me in the past few months that the organization's approach is different from mine. First off, I suspect the approach is less of a problem right now than the results. Second, although the results haven't been great, they haven't ...

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Posted in Baseball | 16 Comments »

Observations from the Weekend

Monday, September 1, 2008
by Geoff Young

First off, if your #2 hitter lays down a sacrifice bunt in the first inning -- as Luis Rodriguez did on Friday night -- then you probably need to find another #2 hitter. Second, for as indifferent as I generally am to the stolen base, it disturbs me that Willy Taveras has more than twice as many by himself this year than does the entire Padres roster. (It also astounds me that Taveras has so many steals despite being a useless hitter -- and people scoff at the notion of there being a continued need for Tony Womack's skill set.) Anyway, it was fun to watch the kids ...

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Posted in Baseball | 21 Comments »

First Padre Blogger Summit

Saturday, May 24, 2008
by Geoff Young

Well, "summit" might be a slight exaggeration, although we were sitting pretty high up in the right-field bleachers. Regardless, on Thursday, a few of us got together for drinks and a ballgame. Attendees included Jason from Padres Revolution (aka sdpadrefan.com), Rich from San Diego Spotlight, Melvin Nieves from Sacrifice Bunt, and yours truly. We started off at The Field for boxty and beer (Boddington's on tap, mmm...), then wandered over to the park just in time to hear the reaction to Ken Griffey Jr.'s 598th career home run. We sat in Section 233, which is actually part of Riverside County, and had a ...

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Posted in Off-Topic | 12 Comments »

Howlin’ Wolf and Friends Take the Fifth

Wednesday, April 16, 2008
by Geoff Young

Randy Wolf's final line looks fantastic, and he pitched a beautiful game, but it didn't seem dominant while I was watching. The Rockies hitters probably have a different opinion. Because my job is to pick nits, I found myself wondering why Wolf needed to throw so many pitches. He walked four and fanned nine, which explains some of it, but he also had a couple of plate appearances last a bit longer than they should have. Wolf jumped ahead of Rockies right fielder Brad Hawpe, 0-2, to start the second inning before issuing a walk. Then in the fourth, Wolf got to the same count against left fielder Matt Holliday, who eventually struck out swinging, but not until the 10th pitch of the at-bat. As I said, ...

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Posted in Game Recaps | 34 Comments »