Tag Archive for ‘Spring Training’ rss

Retiring Number 51

The Padres will retire Trevor Hoffman’s number 51 before Sunday afternoon’s game against the Florida Marlins, Hoffman’s first big-league team. To prepare for this momentous occasion, I thought it might be fun to revisit some past articles about the man here at Ducksnorts.

Spring Sluggers

There has been recent discussion about whether spring training statistics are predictive in some way. John Dewan at ACTA Sports suggests they might be: For the most part, we agree with the common perception that they don’t have value. A bad spring training means nothing. An average spring training tells us nothing. Nevertheless, we did [...]

Open Thread: Stats? Story? Both?

I’ll probably regret asking, but what’s life without a few regrets… Where do you stand on the stats vs story debate that refuses to die? Does this dichotomy exist in the corporeal world or only in the mind of the perceiver? Bonus points if you can: Quantify your response (e.g., on a scale of pi [...]

Open Thread: Who Is the Best Player You’ve Seen?

In the midst of last week’s delighful discussion about players we wished we’d seen, reader Tom Waits wondered about the best players we’ve actually seen. Come to think of it, so do I.

Notes from Peoria

On practice field no. 2, relievers play long toss. Luke Gregerson and Heath Bell are throwing to each other. Chad Qualls is throwing to a left-hander whose name is not visible from here. On other fields, players are working on bunting, fielding, and other skills that might come in handy during the season. It’s 9:30 [...]

Mailbag: On Lineup Construction

We had some good discussion about possible lineups for the 2011 Padres in last week’s open thread. Several suggestions were made regarding specific order, but a few “big picture” comments caught my attention.

Has It Started Yet?

Hey, look, a box score. The Padres lost, 13-12, to the Mariners (those rapscallions!) in 10 innings. Nick Hundley, James Darnell, and Logan Forsythe all homered for San Diego. Starter Tim Stauffer got shelled. Samuel Deduno took the loss.

Open Thread: Spring Forward

After yesterday’s ridiculously long article, we’ll keep it simple today. With spring training upon us, I have three questions for you: Are you planning to attend spring training this year? Have you ever been in the past? If so, do you have any stories to share?

Me, Elsewhere: Hittin’ the SweetSpot

I had the privilege of being guest author at SweetSpot today. My contribution consists of three articles. Unfortunately the Padres are not represented, which is entirely my fault. I had a couple ideas but couldn’t make them work. Here are the articles (my original stupid, cutesy titles in parentheses): The worst pitching duel ever? This [...]

Coming On Like a Hurricane

In the wake of Trevor Hoffman’s recent retirement announcement, I thought we’d go dancing in the dark, walking through the park and reminiscing. Or we could just skip all that and head straight for the rolling thunder and pouring rain…